NBA Preview: Oklahoma City Thunder at Los Angeles Clippers

Added on Apr 02, 2011 by Jack Thurman in

NBA

More Western Conference NBA action for Saturday as the Oklahoma City Thunder play the ‘other’ team at the Staples Center, aka the Los Angeles Clippers. The Clips have improved over last year and have some impressive young talent, but they’re not going to the playoffs this year. The Thunder are going to the postseason but are in a position where they’ve got 4th place all but locked up but will have a hard time running down third place Dallas.

Oklahoma City Thunder at Los Angeles Clippers
April 2, 2011 7:35 PM Pacific

This is what the garden variety ‘square’ would call a ‘trap game’. John Q. Public will look at this, note the relative won/loss records of the teams involved and conclude that OKC is the play. This opinion will be buttressed by the fact that the Thunder lost to the Blazers in Portland last night–the aforementioned ‘square’ will conclude that the Thunder will ‘announce their presence with authority’ tonight and eagerly lay the price with OKC as a road chalk.

It could happen that way but the value is definitely with the Clippers. OKC has been a solid road team this year both SU and ATS but the Clips are improving as a host. They’ve actually got a winning SU record at home and have won 15 of their last 20 at the Staples Center. Oklahoma City, meanwhile, has only covered 2 of their last 7 games going 2-4-1 ATS. The Clippers are on a bad ATS streak covering only 1 of their last 9 games but in this circumstances it gives us more value. Thunder are in a classic ‘sandwich spot’ off a tough game at the Rose Garden last night and with another challenging road game at Denver up next. That game isn’t until 4/5 and the break could make it even more of a ‘letdown’ spot for a team that has little opportunity to enhance or detract from their playoff seeding. Clippers have won and covered 5 of the last 9 in head to head play and could be preparing for an ambush of a team in a tough scheduling spot that’s being overvalued by the public and reflected in the betting line.

Bet Los Angeles Clippers +5 over Oklahoma City Thunder