LA Clippers vs Golden State Warriors Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 15/03/2023, 09:33  by Joseph King | Modified on 15/03/2023 at 09:33 in NBA Predictions

A Western Conference battle in the NBA between two teams that entered the season with title aspirations sees the LA Clippers hosting the Golden State Warriors at the Crypto.com Arena. The Clippers come into this matchup against the defending champions in a good rhythm as they have now strung together three consecutive victories. This is following a terrible stretch of five straight losses that were coincidentally suffered as soon as Russell Westbrook was inserted into the starting lineup. However, the Clips have recovered lately and appear to be gelling well with each other, recording wins over the Grizzlies, Raptors and most recently the Knicks. LA ran out 106-95 winners at home against New York, showing the potential of their defense which held the Knicks to under 100 points. They’ll have to be at their best again here as they come up against a Warriors team that ranks second in scoring with 118.2 points per game. The Clippers rank sixth in the West with a record of 36 wins and 33 losses.

The Warriors have had a difficult season up to this point as the defending champions are still searching for some consistency away from home. They’ve been able to display their championship level play at the Chase Center with a stellar record of 29 wins and seven losses, but their away form has been a completely different story. The Warriors have the starkest home/away difference in the league, recording only seven away wins while losing 26 of their road trips. It’s a bit bizarre how their level of play can drop off so dramatically when playing away from their own arena. A large part likely has to do with the defense which has dropped from being one of the best in the league last season to one of the worst in the league this season. The Warriors were allowing 105.8 points per game in 2021/22, ranking fifth best in the league, but now rank in the bottom 10 in that same stat. The Warriors rank fifth in the West with a record of 36 wins and 33 losses.