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NBA – March 3rd

Sunday afternoon could be a preview of the Western Conference Finals at the Staples Center, where the Oklahoma City Thunder take on the Los Angeles Clippers in NBA betting action.

The Thunder were beaten by the Denver Nuggets on Friday night in a tight 105-103 game, ending a three-game winning streak both from an SU and an ATS perspective. That really doesn’t take anything away from what this team has accomplished this year. F Kevin Durant is still one of the best scorers in the league at 28.5 points per game, and he is also hitting 51.2 percent of his shots from the field and 42.4 percent from beyond the arc. The average of 7.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 1.5 steals, and 1.2 blocks per game make Durant one of the best overall players in the league. G Russell Westbrook remains one of the top scoring point guards in the league as well at 23.3 points per game. The rest of the squad isn’t remarkably assembled, but it doesn’t have to be. F Serge Ibaka has good stats, something that C Kendrick Perkins doesn’t have, but these two are still great enforcers in the middle of the paint on the defensive side of the court.

The Clip Joint could be without F Grant Hill in this one, but that’s nothing out of the ordinary, knowing that he has only played in 19 games this season. LA is one of the most well-rounded teams in the NBA right now, and that goes right along the lines as to what the Nuggets did to the Thunder on Friday. F Blake Griffin, G Jamal Crawford, and G Chris Paul have been a great threesome to lead this team in scoring, basically matching the production of Westbrook and Durant for OKC. F Matt Barnes, F Caron Butler, G Eric Bledsoe, C DeAndre Jordan, G Chauncey Billups, G Willie Green, and F Lamar Odom make up the rest of the squad, and so many of these players could be starters on so many other teams in the league. The team is right on the verge of the Pacific Division title already, and it is going to be in the thick of the fight to get the job done as the top team in the Western Conference.

Prediction:

This is a big game for both of these teams. This game could legitimately be the difference of home court advantage when these teams seemingly inevitably run into each other in the Western Conference Semifinals. Home court advantage is going to be huge in this series, and it is going to be a big day at the Staples Center for the Clips. Los Angeles 107 – Oklahoma City 102