NBA Regular Season 2023/24, Tuesday, 26.03.2024
On Tuesday night, the ambitious but struggling Clippers welcome the spectacular Pacers. Best basketball entertainment should be guaranteed between the two offensively strong but tired teams due to back-to-backs!
My Clippers Pacers betting tip, for which the current Bwin promo code applies, explains why I expect a spotty defense on both sides and accordingly points en masse
A month and a half ago, the Clippers (a type of fast cargo sailing ship built in the USA) had legitimate hopes of securing the top seed in the Western Conference with a record of 34-15.
Since then, however, the Angel Cities around the four future Hall-of-Famers Leonard, George, Harden and Westbrook have been somewhat inconsistent and only have a record of 10-11.
Against other teams with playoff ambitions such as New Orleans (-11 and -8), Minnesota (-21 and -18), OKC (-22), Sacramento (-16), the Lakers (-4) and Milwaukee (twice -7), they have recently been beaten in a row.
Since February 7, the Southern Californians still have the sixteenth-best offense (rating of 115.3), but their defense has been the fifth-worst in the league since then (117.3)!
The team has also been in the bottom third of the league in terms of assist percentage, assist-turnover ratio, rebound percentage, opponents’ three-point percentage and opponents’ turnovers since the first week of February.
All these weaknesses were mercilessly exposed last night by the underdogs from Philadelphia, who downright humiliated LAC 121:107 in front of their home crowd and left the star-studded team with their heads hanging down.
Until the end of the regular season in mid-April, coach Tyronn Lue’s men should now be primarily concerned with defending fourth place and the first-round home advantage that comes with it against the stubborn Pelicans (LAC currently has a 0.5-game lead).
Meanwhile, the visitors from Indiana (6-4 record in their last ten games) sit in sixth place in the East with a 40-32 record, the first guaranteed playoff spot (half game ahead of Miami).
Indiana has the second-best offense in the league this season (rating of 120), while the defense is only the sixth-worst (117.9).
However, the Pacers have improved significantly on defense of late, not least thanks to the mid-season trade for star forward Pascal Siakam.
With a rating of 113.4, Indy still has the fourteenth-best defense in March.
The Yellow and Navy offense is the eleventh best this month (116.4) and the one with the fastest pace (in keeping with the team name)
The strengths and weaknesses of the men under the aegis of veteran coach and championship coach Rick Carlisle became apparent in yesterday’s spectacular game at the Lakers, which was lost 145:150.
The outstanding player for the visitors from Indianapolis was the aforementioned Pascal Siakam, who put up 36 points on 16/29 attempts.
In general, the two-time All-NBA player has settled in well in the Midwest and in his 31 games to date has posted strong figures of 21.4 points, 8 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 0.9 steals with a formidable 55.4% from the field and 36.9% from the three-point line.
This makes “Spicy P” the perfect complement to Indy’s floor general Tyrese Haliburton (20.4 points and 11.2 assists), who has been able to free himself from a formidable shooting slump in the last two games.
The first leg of tonight’s clash went to the Clippers by a clear 151:127 at the beginning of December, but they were in much better form back then and didn’t have to face Siakam, who was still playing for the Raptors at the time.
Therefore, I definitely don’t see the hosts as clear favorites as the online sports betting providers do.
The Angel Cities were too vulnerable defensively last night. I think it is unlikely that they will be able to plug the holes in their defense, which is particularly susceptible to opponents’ threes, overnight.
The Pacers, who are equipped with veritable three-point shooters without end, will therefore be offered a lot of high-percentage shots from downtown.
But the Pacers are also more than susceptible defensively and are likely to offer the Clippers, who are eager for rehab, plenty of high-percentage shots.
The fact that both teams have already played last night shouldn’t make it any easier for the respective defenses, as defending has always been the more demanding discipline and involves more hustle.
So it’s last night’s games in particular that bring me to my Clippers Pacers prediction of over 233.5 points over the course of the game.
A similarly lucrative tip should be “Siakam with over 23.5 points” (odds around 1.95), as the Clippers lack a strong and mobile power forward who can match both “Spicy P’s” size and agility.
But my Clippers Pacers tip is: Over 233.5 points in the game!
