The Los Angeles Clippers will look to continue their recent-found positive momentum on the hardwood as they travel to the Beehive State to take on the Utah Jazz. Let's check out our NBA odds series where our Clippers-Jazz prediction and pick will be made.
Could the Clippers finally be turning a corner? They just might as well be. After countless amount of games where there seemed to be a disconnect between newly-acquired guard James Harden and the rest of the roster, Los Angeles has managed to win four of their last six games and might finally be figuring out how to space their superstars on both ends of the floor. Overall, the Clippers have fought their way back to a dead-even 10-10 record but are only 3-7 on the road so far this season.
On the other side of things, the struggling Utah Jazz continue to slide in a negative fashion and have lost three of their last four contests. With a 7-14 record, the Jazz at least have posted a winning record in front of their home fans with a 6-4 mark. After getting embarrassed at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks which resulted in surrendering an unfathomable 147 points in the 50-point loss, can the Jazz regroup on short notice and play with a little pride?
Here are the NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Clippers-Jazz Odds
Los Angeles Clippers: -7.5 (-108)
Utah Jazz: +7.5 (-112)
Over: 225 (-110)
Under: 225 (-110)
How to Watch Clippers vs. Jazz
Time: 10:10 ET/7:10 PT
TV: Bally Sports San Diego/Bally Sports SoCal
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Clippers Could Cover The Spread
The amount of star power on this roster is bright enough to outshine Sirius in the nighttime sky, but a little thing called chemistry is extremely important. Indeed, many expected this James Harden experiment to take some time if it was ever going to work, but the Clippers seem to have found a winning formula of late which is a sight for sore eyes for everyone involved with this organization.
For starters, if the Clippers are going to take care of their business by handling the Jazz on the road later this evening, then expect LA to make an increased effort to play some high-level defense against a rather up-and-down Utah offense. Simply put, flying around defensively and wreaking havoc has been the name of the game for this Clippers squad lately as Los Angeles ranks within the top 10 of the league in forcing turnovers and missed shots. Alas, winning on the road in the National Basketball Association is no walk in the park, and if the Clippers do have aspirations to continue their success on the hardwood, then putting together a rock-solid defensive effort will be more than needed.
All in all, the one area of concern for the Clippers heading into this matchup will be figuring out a way to increase their efficiency from the free-throw line. Despite LA finding a way to reach the charity stripe a healthy 25 separate times, but they shot only 76% in the win over Denver. While out on the road, capitalizing on your free-throw attempts will prove to be vital and the Clippers could be in trouble if they cannot.
Why The Jazz Could Cover The Spread
At first glance, the Jazz may be in the middle of a rebuild, but there is still plenty of talent to go around on this roster. However, this game is getting off on the wrong foot before it even begins as it is expected that Lauri Markkanen will sit out Friday night's contest with a nagging hamstring injury. To make matters worse, Jordan Clarkson has also been dealing with a bum thigh, but he has recently been upgraded to probable for tonight's action which would be a huge addition to this offensive attack.
With the absence of Markkanen going to undoubtedly sting for Utah's chances to win and cover the spread, the Jazz were flat-out embarrassed by the Mavericks last time out and that type of shortcoming will certainly be fresh on the minds of every player and coach in that Utah locker room. On paper, the biggest aspect of the game that the Jazz struggled with was taking care of the basketball. By the time the final whistle blew in the blowout defeat, Utah's sloppiness came back to bite them in the behind as they committed 19 turnovers throughout the contest. As a whole, this is a team that often shoots themselves in the foot far too often as this is something that needs to change in a hurry before the season is all but lost.
If there is one intriguing name to keep an eye out for in this one, be on the lookout for rookie forward Taylor Hendricks who was the ninth overall pick in this year's draft. In his third appearance on the season Wednesday, Hendricks logged in a career-high 25 minutes and will be tasked with a bigger role in the wake of Markkanen's absence.
Final Clippers-Jazz Prediction & Pick
The Clippers are finally clicking on all cylinders while the Jazz are coming off the most embarrassing loss in their recent memory. What could go wrong? A lot if you are a Jazz fan/bettor. Take LA to cover the spread and get the job done in this primetime showdown.
Final Clippers-Jazz Prediction & Pick: Clippers -7.5 (-108)
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