GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS VS LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
1.74
TOTAL (INCL OVERTIME) - UNDER 220.5
It’s the last day of the NBA regular season and it has been a longtime since the standings were so close, at least in the Western conference. The stakes are high for a lot of teams. The Warriors and The Clippers are two of those. They square off tonight at the Chase Center in San Francisco. The losing team will end up in the well feared play-in.
Over the last stretch or 15 games the Los Angeles Clippers have been top three in the NBA. That’s both in offensive and defensive rating. That is a rare feat to be completely honest. It tells you a lot about where The Clippers are right now. They are in a very good place and have turned it up just at the right time of the season. Ty Lue‘s team is very well coached and has the needed weapons on both ends of the floor to make a deep run in the playoffs.
The Clippers have wons eleven straight and 14 out of their last 16 games in the National Basketball Association. The seven game winning streak is the longest ongoing currently in the NBA together with the Bucks. The riser is ready for the playoffs with the additions of Bogdan Bogdanovic and Ben Simmons. The super skilled Kawhi Leonard is looking better than he's done in years. When he is at his best, the Clippers are a tough nut to crack. The Clippers are 5th in the West with a record of 49 wins and 32 lost games. The road record is 19-21.
The Clippers almost slipped up when they faced the Sacramento Kings on the road in their prior match. They won by 101-100 and could take a deep breath of relief afterwards. Leonard scored 28 points. James Harden had a triple double with 23 points, 11 boards, ten dimes and one block. Ivica Zubac had another double double with 17 points and eleven rebounds. The French veteran Nicolas Batum was hurt versus Sacramento and is questionable for this one. The Clippers have faced The Warriors on three occasions this season and have won them all.
If the Warriors lose to the Clippers they will most likely end up in the play-in. That was of course not the objective when they brought in Jimmy Butler from the Miami Heat on trade deadline day early february. The Warriors have been very impressing over the last two months. They have won 23 out of their last 30 games. Golden State defeated Portland in their prior game but slipped up against The San Antonio Spurs earlier in the week in a loss which could turnout to be very damaging for Steph Curry and his teammates.
In the win versus the Trail Blazers (103-86) Jimmy Butler had a great game with 24 points, he made six out of his shot attempts. He also had seven dimes, five boards, two steals and was a plus 22. Curry had a quiet night and only made two out of his eight shots from behind the arc. Buddy Hield had 16 points off the bench. He hit four out of his ten attempted three pointers. Butler and Draymond Green will take turns guarding Leonard. The two benches could play a crucial part in this one. The team that wins the bench minutes will most likely win the game. The Warriors have a record of 48 wins and 33 losses. Their home record in the Bay Area is at 24-16.
