One of Golden State’s losses this season came in the second game of a back-to-back, and that’s what the Dubs are faced with after a contest in Portland on Friday. The Clippers will try to take advantage of that situation. But playing on consecutive days hasn’t bothered the Warriors the other 12 times.
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SCHEDULING
The Warriors are chasing history and will do so with a bunch of road games to start the second part of their season. The seven-game roadie started with the final game before the break with a win in Phoenix, and continues post-break with six more. Following Saturday’s game, the Dubs head east to Atlanta, Orlando and Miami, before traversing back for a showdown with Oklahoma City. Golden State doesn’t play its first home game after the break until Mar. 1. The six games will come in a span of nine days with two back-to-backs. The Warriors face the Clippers after a game in Portland on Friday. Golden State’s first loss of the season came in the second game of a back-to-back at Milwaukee on Dec. 12 after the Dubs started the season with a record 24 straight wins. They are 12-1 SU and 10-3 ATS in the second of back-to-back games, but the league’s highest scoring team has cashed the under seven times in those 13 games, including the last three.
INJURIES
Through their championship run last season and the first half of this one, the Warriors have stayed remarkably healthy. Backup center Festus Ezeli is out until late March after having arthroscopic surgery on his left knee.
The Clippers hope to welcome Blake Griffin back into their locker room. He isn’t expected to play in a game until sometime next month after he recovers from his hand injury and serves a four-game suspension. Austin Rivers could return sooner. He’s about halfway through his expected month long injury absence due to his broken hand.
KEY MATCHUP
With four of the top backcourt players, this game is all about guard play. And the Warriors have the better players. When the Clippers are not playing Golden State, their duo of Chris Paul and J.J. Redick is probably the best. When facing the Warriors, they play second fiddle to Steph Curry and Klay Thompson. Curry’s ability to hit shots from all over the floor is mind-boggling. He takes shots from 30 feet or more away from the hoop and drains them like layups. He is the best pure-shooter in the game today – maybe ever. But he does everything on the floor, which makes him and the Warriors so good. Curry is second with 6.6 assists and third with 5.3 rebounds per game. But, oh, the sweet shot. Curry will obliterate his record for most three-pointers made in a season, likely by the end of the month, and he scores 30 points a night effortlessly. He went for 40 points in the last meeting with the Clips and averages 35.5 points in the two games with 13 threes in 25 attempts. Teams haven’t figured out how to stop him yet.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Golden State is 48-4 and will bring an 11-game winning streak into Portland on Friday when their season resumes. The Warriors could reach 50 wins – for many clubs, the mark of a very good regular season – with a victory Saturday against the Clippers in what’s become perhaps the testiest rivalry. Golden State won both earlier meetings, covering the spread with a 124-117 win at Staples on Nov. 19. The Dubs failed to cover as a 7.5-point favorite in a 112-108 home win on Nov. 4. The Clippers are a different team without Griffin, who’s been out since Christmas, and they’ve done quite well with a small-ball lineup that uses more motion and passing. It’s similar to the Warriors offense, but not as explosive. They hit the break at 18-5 SU and 15-8 ATS without their power forward with an improved offensive and defensive efficiency rating. The games have been close and there’s no reason to believe this one will be different.
Los Angeles 118, Golden State 115
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