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The rousing comeback win by the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 2 just pissed off the defending champion Golden State Warriors, who swept both games in LA to move within a victory of advancing to the Western Conference semifinals.
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The Dubs would like to end this series as quickly as possible with a playoff rematch with the Houston Rockets likely next in line. But the Warriors haven’t been the dominant home team we’ve seen in past years and the Clips can look back at their 31-point comeback for motivation on Wednesday.
Los Angeles Clippers at Golden State Warriors
Date and Time: Wednesday, April 24, 2019, 10:30 p.m. ET
Location: Oracle Arena, Oakland, CA
Opening NBA Odds: Golden State -14, O/U 235
Clippers at Warriors TV Coverage: TNT
Odds Analysis
The Warriors are probably looking ahead to the next round of the playoffs after storming back from that Game 2 debacle where they squandered a 31-point lead and lost. The Clippers are not looking past Wednesday since their season hangs in the balance. Nobody expected the Clips to win this series and taking a game probably seems like a minor miracle. The Clips need to win three straight to pull off the biggest upset in NBA history, and since they’ve beaten Golden State just three times in the last 22 meetings, that’s not going to happen.
Responding to their loss in Game 2, the Warriors headed south to take control of the series by sweeping at Staples Center. Any thoughts the Clippers had of building off their impressive comeback win were quickly squashed with the Dubs 27-point beatdown in Game 3. Things were tighter on Sunday, but the Dubs withstood LA’s best shot and worked around Stephen Curry foul trouble to beat the Clippers for the 19th time in the last 22 matchups.
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Clippers
The Clippers are not going to win if their super subs Lou Williams and Montrezl Harrell don’t produce. In the Game 2 comeback win the pair was instrumental, combining to score 61 points. However, they couldn’t match that total in the two losses in SoCal going for a combined 53 points in the two games. Golden State’s focus on Williams the last two games allowed for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to play a bigger role, and the rookie went off for 25 points on Sunday after totaling just 29 in the first three games.
With nothing to lose in the series, the Clippers played like it in Game 4, taking a third quarter lead and trailing by just three points entering the fourth quarter. But they were beaten on the boards by a wide margin and couldn’t contain Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson, who picked up the slack for Curry and didn’t allow the Clips to get any closer. LA did cover the closing spread however, and I anticipate they will play like there is no tomorrow on Wednesday, because, well, there is no tomorrow if they lose.
Warriors
Several of the Warriors are talking about getting rested for a potential West semifinal matchup with Houston. The only problem is neither team has advanced that far yet, though they both have commanding leads in their series. And there is no guarantee the Dubs advance on Wednesday, despite what Thompson says, given their bouts of ineffectiveness at home this season.
It’s hard not to like their chances, though, especially after their performance in Game 4. With Curry limited by foul trouble and contributing just 12 points and one three-point basket, you’d think the Clips could steal another game. But Thompson (32) and Durant (33) were up to the challenge combining for 65 points and nine triples. The game was especially encouraging for Thompson, who hadn’t scored more than 19 points in any of his previous eight contests.
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With all their talk about getting some rest for the next round of the playoffs, there is still one hurdle to clear, and the Warriors better not look too far ahead. Sure, they will probably win the game now that Curry had his brief slumber. But I expect the Clippers to play like they have nothing to lose. And that makes them dangerous. While the Dubs got slim production from Curry last game, the Clips managed to hang close with their top scorers off target. Williams, Harrell and Danilo Gallinari need to find the basket and they will, giving the Clippers enough of a cushion to cover the 14-point spread.
NBA Playoff Score Prediction: Warriors 116, Clippers 107
