Riding a five-game win streak, the Los Angeles Clippers look to keep it rolling when they square off vs the Washington Wizards. The Wiz are reportedly filled with turmoil after their 5-11 SU and ATS start and have dropped back-to-back games vs the Nets and Blazers. Washington may need to make moves sooner rather than later but is still only three games back of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.
The Wizards opened as 1-point favorites with a total of 230.5.
- The Clippers are 16-4 SU in the last 20 games vs the Wizards.
- Washington is ranked 29th in points allowed per game this season (116.9).
- The OVER has hit in the Clippers’ last 5 games (avg. combined score: 242 points).
Clippers vs Wizards Game Center
Clippers Have Been The Aggressor In This Matchup
In one of the more surprising developments this season, the Clippers are tied for first in the Western Conference at 11-5 SU with a dominating home record at 7-1 SU. This time, they hit the road to DC to face the Wiz and after winning 16 of the last 20 games in this matchup, it’s a bit of a surprise that they opened as underdogs.
The Clippers’ offense has been excellent to start the year with four players averaging over 15 points per game and the team as a whole shooting a blistering 38.3 percent from three-point range. Montrezl Harrell is making a serious case for Sixth Man of the Year as he’s averaging 15.3 points per game and has yet to start a game this season.
The Clippers may be coming off a back-to-back but dating back to last season, they’ve won three straight games when playing on consecutive nights, including a 25-point win over the Magic on the road. Factoring in that L.A. is 4-1 ATS in the last five games in this matchup, it feels like a no-brainer to back The Clip Show.
Wizards’ Defense is Laughable
With the Wizards at 5-10 ATS in 15 games, spread bettors have been burned repeatedly by Washington this season and turmoil in the locker room has spilled out onto the court. The cohesiveness on the floor is completely off as evidenced by the Wizards’ defensive efforts. They’re allowing 116.9 points per game, which ranks 29th in the NBA, and they’re allowing opponents to shoot 37.9 percent from deep, which also ranks 29th.
Another reason the Wiz are falling short of expectations is rebounding. Adding Dwight Howard was supposed to correct some of the defensive and rebound issues but the Wizards are being outrebounded by 6.7 boards per game, which again ranks 29th in the NBA.
I can’t endorse the Wizards to cover the spread, win the game or even make the playoffs at this rate. The pairing of John Wall and Bradley Beal doesn’t seem to be working out and with reports of everyone on the roster being available for trade, I’d be more surprised to hear someone telling me to wager on the Wizards to win this game.
Is Another OVER In Store?
The total opened at 230.5 and while that seems like a high figure to surpass, these two teams have the goods (and bad) to make it happen. The OVER has hit in the Clippers’ last five games with an average combined score of 242 points per game. The Wizards play almost no defense and when they faced the Clips near the end of October, they gave up 136 points and the final combined score was 240.
My Pick Is…
To take the Clippers to cover the spread. This feels like a trap game with all the unrest being reported in Washington and with L.A. being on the second game of a back-to-back, but I’ve seen enough of the Wizards this season to know they are outgunned when facing a team like the Clippers. Take the Clippers and be happy you got them at such a low spread.
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