The Utah Jazz had their backs against the wall this weekend, but now they have some room to breathe. The Jazz tied up their first round series against the Los Angeles Clippers, setting up a crucial Game 5 back in California.
The teams finished with identical records in the regular season and have now split the first four games of this series, so clearly it is a pretty evenly matched series. The Clippers get the home court in this contest, but will be without one of their best players in Blake Griffin, which should have a big impact in the outcome.
The Jazz have also missed a couple of key guys for stretches during this series, but if they are full strength in this contest the spread should be really small in favor of Los Angeles. Both teams badly want to win this game, and the one that comes away victorious will have the upper hand in capturing this series.
This war on the floor will go down Tuesday, April 25, 2017, at 10:30 p.m. ET at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The game will be televised live on TNT.
We'll have NBA odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the NBA Tuesday schedule.
NBA Odds
The Jazz were five-point favorites in Game 4, and while the game was within a point heading down the stretch, Utah hit all the big shots to cover in a 105-98 victory. The “over” was the correct call in this one as the scoring total was set at 196.
Utah is 53-33 straight up and 40-43-3 against the spread this season. The Jazz have played in 43 road games on the season, covering in 20 of them. The Jazz are just 11-17 against the spread as the underdog this season.
The Clippers are 53-33 straight up and 41-44-1 against the spread. Los Angeles is 21-21-1 at home against the spread and 28-32-1 attempting to cover as the favorite.
Last Time Out
With Gordon Hayward sideline early on because of food poisoning, Joe Johnson came up huge. He finished the game with 28 points on 12-of-17 shooting, including several big-time shots down the stretch when he took over.
Derrick Favors added 17 points off the bench as Utah outscored the Clippers by 10 points in the final quarter for the win. Chris Paul did what he could for Los Angeles, scoring 27 points, dishing out 12 assists and adding nine rebounds. Jamal Crawford had 25 points off the bench and hit 9-of-13 from the field, but he had five fouls, which limited his playing time.
Injury Report
Each side has lost critical players to injury or illness throughout this series. The Clippers will be without Griffin for the remainder of the playoffs after he suffered a toe injury in Game 3. Griffin averaged 21.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game during the regular season, and his absence severely limits the Clippers’ potential to make a deep run.
The Jazz lost star forward Rudy Gobert to a knee injury in the opening minute of the first game of the series, but he was able to return for Game 4. He finished that one with 15 points and 13 rebounds and is a big piece for Utah.
While the Jazz got Gobert back for Game 4, they lost Hayward after only nine minutes due to food poisoning. He is the team’s best player, and it remains to be seen what his availability will be like for Game 5. Hayward has a couple days to get rid of the illness, but it might weaken him even if he can play.
Free NBA ATS Pick
The presence of Hayward is critical to Utah’s chance in Game 5, as the road game won’t be easy. However, if he can play, it will be a big boost. Gobert is back in the fold while Griffin is out.
The Clippers still have Paul, DeAndre Jordan and some solid role players, but if Hayward can play, the Jazz should feel good about its chance. The pick here is for Utah to steal this one on the road in the last seconds to go home with a chance to clinch this first round series.
NBA Odds: Jazz 98, Clippers 96
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