Another big one is set to go down in Tinseltown on Thursday night in the second leg of TNT’s doubleheader when MVP Award frontrunner Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets square off against Kawhi Leonard and the Los Angeles Clippers looking to even up the season rivalry. LA avenged its playoff defeat to the Nuggs by scoring the decisive 121-108 win and cover as 3.5-point favorites in the rival’s first run-in at the end of December. The Clippers were simply on fire from deep with the team draining 50 percent of its 38 attempted shots led by Paul George’s 5 of 9 showing. Denver has a home date with the Philadelphia 76ers and will have 24 hours of rest to prepare for this tilt. LA will also be on a full day of rest, but must square off against Milwaukee and Orlando in a back-to-back first. It remains to be seen if any of the players acquired before the trade deadline will suit up for their new respective teams. Hit the injury reports hard leading up to tip-off!
This Western Conference battle is set to go down live on Thursday, April 1, 2021. Tip-off is set for 10 p.m. ET from the Staples Center. The game will be broadcast live on TNT. We'll have NBA odds available at BookMaker.eu for this and every game on Thursday’s NBA slate.
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Odds Analysis
The Nuggets are in a groove heading into Tuesday night’s home clash with the Sixers. Jamal Murray and company will go into that matchup having logged wins in three of their last four games, and covered the closing NBA odds three times. It trounced the Atlanta Hawks last time out 126-102 as 5-point home favorites to pull to 10 games over .500 for the season with a 22-24 ATS record in tow. The team’s best work has occurred away from the Pepsi Center where it’s amassed 15-9 SU and 13-11 ATS records. If the Nuggets are hot, the Clippers are molten lava with the squad coming out victorious in each of its last five games ultimately sending their wagering supporters back to the window to cash tickets. In toppling the Hornets, Hawks and 76ers in its last three home games, LA improved its home record to 16-6 and results against the linemakers to 13-9. LA has won and covered its last five home games dating back to February 23!
Denver Nuggets
Sitting 6.5 games in back of the Utah Jazz for the Northwest Division lead and owners of the No. 5 seed in the Western Conference, the Nuggs once again look to be a viable title contender. It certainly looked the part last time out after taking the wood to Atlanta. Denver found itself trailing 35-31 after a quarter of play, but then went on to outscore the Hawks 95-67 the rest of the way to log the 24 point win and easy cover. Denver shot 54 percent from the field as a team while Jokic came two assists shy from logging yet another triple-double.
Los Angeles Clippers
The win and pointspread cover streak extended to five straight on Saturday when the Clippers disposed of the Embiid-less 76ers 122-112 as 5.5-point favorites. Though Philadelphia would go on to shoot 51 percent from the field, it proved to not be enough to contend with an LA squad currently firing on all cylinders. Kawhi would lead the team in scoring with 28 points on 9 of 17 shooting, but Paul George and Terance Mann also chipped in with 24 and 23 points respectively to help lead the team to victory. George came up just short of logging a triple-double as well.
Denver vs. Los Angeles Prediction
As solid a moneymaker Denver has been when playing away from the comforts of its own arena, Los Angeles is simply just too hot to step in front of right now. Now granted, the Nuggets will own the rest advantage in this one having played one game over a 72-hour stretch and the Clippers two, but I’ve got a feeling Tyronn Lue will rest one or both of his PTP’ers in the second leg of the back-to-back versus Orlando knowing full well the Magic are currently trotting a G League lineup onto the hardwood right now. That seven game playoff defeat to Denver still likely isn’t sitting well with Kawhi and company, so look for them to make it a point to protect their house and take another from the Nuggets in a covering fashion.
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