Clippers at Heat – Baron’s Back but is it Enough
BetUS NBA Basketball Betting Odds: MIAMI -10, Total 190.5
Here are some of the NBA pro basketball online betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
* LA has lost its last five games SU
* LA has lost 19 of its last 21 games SU * LA has lost its last five games ATS
* LA has played five of its last seven games OVER the total
* LA has lost its last nine road games SU
* LA has lost its last five road games ATS
* LA has played six of its last seven road games OVER the total
* MIA has covered eight of its last 12 games
* MIA has played nine of its last 13 games OVER the total
* MIA has won eight of its last 11 home games SU
* MIA has played nine of its last 13 home games UNDER the total
Also…
* LA has won four of the last five meetings SU
* The last six meetings have gone OVER the total
* LA has covered six of the last eight meetings as the road team
* MIA has won nine of the last 13 meetings SU as the home team
* The last five meetings in Miami have gone OVER the total
* LA has had the rebounding edge in each of the last five meetings
* MIA has made more three-pointers in seven of the last nine meetings
Over their last five games, the Clippers have lost touch with opponents, losing by margins of 15, 25, 20, 17 and 12 points. They have won only two games in their last 21. In its last game, Mike Dunleavy’s team committed 24 turnovers against Washington. The good news is that two of the Clippers’ injured stars, Baron Davis and Marcus Camby, have returned to action. Davis got his feet wet in a couple of games, then scored 17 against the Wizards. Camby hasn’t been scoring much (16 points in three games since returning), but he’s had seven blocked shots in the last two contests.
One of the interesting developments for the Clippers has been the emergence of rookie shooting guard Eric Gordon, who came out of Indiana after just one season. Since the start of the new year, Gordon has been tough to stop, averaging 21.3 points a game, with a high of 41 against Oklahoma City on January 23. DeAndre Jordan, a center who also came out of school after his freshman season, chipped in with a 20-rebound performance against Golden State, and scored 23 points in a January 21 game against the Lakers. There is a lot of young talent on this team; all they seem to lack is the coach who can bring it all together. Why Mike Dunleavy still has a job with them is anybody’s guess.
Miami has had a couple of tough games over the weekend, losing by 11 points to Indiana and 16 points to the Dallas Mavericks. That followed two standout defensive efforts against Washington and Atlanta, to whom they allowed just 150 total points. The Heat is still a playoff contender, tied for the fifth spot in the Eastern Conference with the Detroit Pistons.
The Clippers are 11-11 ATS on the road; often they have been under-valued. Is this one of those cases? The Heat is relatively thin. Shawn Marion will probably be out of this game with his groin injury, and Daequan Cook has a bruised left thigh. We’ve not been overly impressed with the recent output of Michael Beasley, nor that of Udonis Haslem. It is apparent that Camby is providing a defensive element for L.A. once again, Davis is rounding into form, and the injuries have allowed some of the young guys to break through a bit. There is a case to be made for an “over,” since both teams are strongly trending in that direction, but we’ll go ahead and take the points with the healthier Clippers, the 10-point underdog in the BetUS NBA pro basketball betting odds, is what is a mild recommendation.
