NBA Betting – Los Angeles Clippers at Miami Heat

Being without one star player is bad enough, having a pair out at the same time is deadly. The Los Angeles Clippers found out how difficult life without Paul George and Kawhi Leonard can be losing the first game of a six-game road trip to Atlanta on Tuesday ending their seven-game winning streak. The superstar duo didn’t travel with the club and they’ll miss Thursday’s game with the Miami Heat, which is the first game of a TNT doubleheader.  Bookmaker.eu offers a generous CASH welcome bonus (max bonus $1600 CASH)

Los Angeles Clippers at Miami Heat
Date and Time: Thursday, January 28, 2021, 7 p.m. ET
Location: American Airlines Arena, Miami, FL
Opening NBA Odds: Miami -4 / Total 215.5
Clippers at Heat TV Coverage: TNT

Odds Analysis

The Clippers are used to being without Leonard or George since it happened quite a bit last season. But having both of their top players shelved at the same time is more of a rarity. The team opened a six-game road trip without the pair and succumbed to the Hawks 108-99, putting an end to a seven-game winning streak that saw them briefly catch the Lakers for the top spot in the Western Conference. The Clips were catching 6-points on the closing line in a game they likely would have been the favorite had one or both of the superstars suited up. LA failed to cover in a second straight game falling to 13-5 SU and 10-8 ATS. The current Miami situation isn’t much better. Getting swept in two-game series by Brooklyn extended their drought to three games and they’ve dropped six of their last eight games tumbling in the East standings. The LA game is also the second of a back-to-back after hosting Denver on Wednesday. Overall Miami is 6-10 SU and 6-9-1 ATS.

Los Angeles Clippers

The Clippers had one of the best groups of reserves last season and that depth will be tested over the next several games with George and Leonard out due to health and safety protocols. A third starter, Patrick Beverley, also missed the last game and is questionable with knee soreness. Leonard and George each average over 23 points while playing more than 34 minutes a game. Beverley chips in 8.1 points and is a tenacious defender.

It’s also a blow to club that hadn’t been impacted by COVID prior to this week. “It’s tough. It’s just how this year is going to go. We were lucky to have everyone so far, but it is what it is. We’ve got to adjust. It’s going to be this type of season for everyone and we’re not the exception,” noted Ivica Zubac. Tyronn Lue said he’s looking forward to seeing what other players can do. Zubac had a double-double against the Hawks with 13 points and 10 rebounds in only 18 minutes off the bench.

Luke Kennard, Terance Mann and Reggie Jackson moved into the starting lineup against the Hawks combining to score 43 points. And the team knows what to expect now after learning of the absences just before departing for the trip. The big two will return at some point, maybe even on this road trip. But they won’t play on Thursday leaving the Clippers shorthanded.

Miami Heat

The Heat are finding out what it’s like to be the hunted. They kinda snuck up on everyone last season blazing through the playoffs to reach the NBA Finals. Things haven’t gone smoothly this season and Miami finds itself closer to last place in the East than to the eighth seed. Of course it’s still early with plenty of games to be played, but they count the same at this juncture of the season and teams can burn their postseason hopes more than they can help them.

Like most teams the Heat are experiencing personnel issues that have led to their slow start. A loss to Brooklyn on Monday left them at 6-10 with All-Star Jimmy Butler missing half of those games. Butler is the closest thing the Heat have to a superstar and his absence hurts in a number of ways. Not only can he do everything on the court, he’s also a leader in the locker room. Tyler Herro, is also sidelined with a neck injury taking over 33 points of production off the floor.

The Clippers don’t have a player to defend Bam Adebayo leaving him free to roam. Adebayo has picked up the slack averaging a team-best 20.7 points. In the two-game set against the Nets he totaled 67 points, including a career-best 41 in the opener, along with 15 rebounds and 14 assists.

Bet Clippers at Heat at BookMaker.eu

This game isn’t going to have the star power, but it should be entertaining nonetheless. The Heat are missing several other role players due to injury and illness and they didn’t have the firepower to keep up with the Nets. That isn’t going to change and they are playing the second game of a back-to-back further impacting their depth.

NBA Score Prediction: Clippers 108, Heat 102

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- Phil Simon, Gambling911.com