The Miami Heat will take on the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday, December 25. The Heat are coming off a strong run last season. They finished the regular season 5th in the Eastern Conference, going 44-29 over 73 games. 

The Heat went on to have a stellar playoff run. They destroyed the Indiana Pacers in the opening round 4-0, and did an equal amount of damage to the Milwaukee Bucks, who topped the standings after the regular season. 

The Heat went into the conference finals with eight wins and only one loss under their belts. The Heat then won the conference final over the Boston Celtics 4-2.

This put the Heat into the championship round against the Los Angeles Lakers. Though they put up a fight, the Heat could not prevail over the Lakers and lost the series 4-2. 

Since then, the Heat recently extended the contract of Tyler Herro, the 20 year-old shooting guard who played in all 21 of the Heats’ playoff games last season. Herro continues to show promise this year, and will likely be a key player in propelling the team into playoff contention this season. 

The Pelicans had a very different experience last season. They finished the regular season 13th in the Western Conference with a 30-42 record and no chance of qualifying for playoffs.

Betting lines for this Miami Heat vs. New Orleans Pelicans game are available on PowerPlay.com. These two teams met at center court to start their respective preseasons. In that game, the Pelicans took home a huge victory, defeating the Heat 114-92. The Heat then faced the Toronto Raptors for their final preseason game, where the Heat won 117-105. The Heat will face off with the Orlando Magic in their first regular season game, two days prior to taking on the Pelicans. 

The Pelicans also took on the Bucks in the preseason, where the Pelicans surprisingly won 127-113. The Pelicans play their first regular season game the same day as the Heat, only they will be taking on the Raptors.

Miami Heat vs. New Orleans Pelicans betting odds and lines are on PowerPlay.com. In this Christmas Day match, the Heat stand a very good chance of winning despite their earlier loss to the Pelicans given the greater depth on their roster compared to the Pelicans. A Miami Heat vs. New Orleans Pelicans full prediction can also be found here.

Following the conclusion of this match, the Heat will remain at home for a double header against the Bucks on Tuesday, December 29 and Wednesday, December 30 with a 7:30 p.m. ET tip-off for both games. 

The Pelicans will fly home to host the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday, December 27 at 7: 00 p.m. ET.