Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers will close Thursday’s NBA action. The hosts look forward to beating their rivals again and continuing the winning streak. The away side searches for the way out from the losing streak and wants to stay in the playoffs zone.
These two sides faced each other last week, and the Clippers celebrated a road win. They hope to provide another victorious display and keep their winning streak lasting a little bit longer. On the other hand, the Lakers’ losing run started with a defeat against the Clippers. The visitors want to end it here and stay on the track to the post-season.
Los Angeles Clippers – Can they beat their rivals again?
The Clippers return to the home court after three straight wins on the road, hoping to keep up the pace and book the fifth win in a row overall. That excellent run saw them improving to a 33-31 record, and the hosts are now third in the Pacific Division. Nevertheless, they are ten wins behind the second-placed Golden State Warriors, but LA wants to keep their 3rd place intact. They head to this clash after beating the Rockets 113-100 on the road. The Clippers controlled the paint, having ten rebounds more than their opponents, while Ivica Zubac had a very good display with 22 points, 12 rebounds, a pair of assists, a block, and a steal for 25 minutes on the court.
Paul George leads LA’s offense with 24.7 points, 7.1 rebounds, 5.5 assists, and two steals per match. Norman Powell made an instant contribution after joining in the midseason trade, producing 21 pts, four assists, and three rebs, and having a 25.16 Player Efficiency Rating. Reggie Jackson has contributed with 16.7 points, Marcus Morris Sr. averages 16 per game, while Ivica Zubac tops the rebounds charts with 8.2. Norman Powell and Jason Preston won’t make appearances on Thursday evening, while the other players are available for this clash.
Expected Line-Up: Reggie Jackson, Terance Mann, Marcus Morris Sr., Nicolas Batum, Ivica Zubac
with best odds
Los Angeles Lakers – Will they bounce back with a win?
On the other hand, the Lakers cannot be happy with their current form since they go to this match after three straight defeat. They celebrated just once on the previous seven occasions and stayed fourth in the Pacific Division with a 27-34 record. Los Angeles goes for the road game after four matches in a row at the home court. In the latest one, they couldn’t upset the Mavericks, who booked a 109-104 win. Although LeBron James scored 26 points, followed by 12 rebounds, five assists, and a steal, the Lakers couldn’t stop Luka Doncic.
LeBron James has been the most productive player for the Lakers this season, averaging 28.9 points, eight rebounds, 6.3 assists, 1.6 steals, and one block per game. Anthony Davis has contributed with 23.1 pts, 9.7 rebs, and 2.3 blocks per contest, while Russell Westbrook has 18.1 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 7.3 assists. However, the Lakers cannot count on several players for this game since Avery Bradley and Anthony Davis are out, while LeBron James and Talen Horton-Tucker are questionable.
Expected Line-Up: Russell Westbrook, Austin Reaves, Stanley Johnson, Trevor Ariza, Dwight Howard
Expert Pick #1 – Los Angeles Clippers -2.5 @-110
The home side in in a much better momentum, and they should take advantage of that to beat their division rivals. I expect the Clippers to book their fifth straight win and cover, and that’s going to be my first pick.
Expert Pick #2 – Under 220 @-110
Neither side has been involved in high-scoring matches lately, and the Under is the play for the second bet. It cashed four times in the Clippers’ last five games, as well as five times in the Lakers’ previous six matches.
Expert Pick #3 – Los Angeles Lakers Under 109.5 @-120
Consequently, with LeBron James being questionable for this game, I don’t think the Lakers will score more than 109 points. They failed to do so on the previous four occasions, and this is going to be my third pick at slightly lower odds.
