The Battle of LA rages on tonight with the Los Angeles Clippers (27-28) making the short drive over to the Staples Center to take on the Los Angeles Lakers (33-21). The Lakers own a lifetime record of 157-89 against the Clippers, but it is the Clippers who lead the season series so far, 2-1.
Clippers vs. Lakers tips off at 10:00 p.m. ET on Friday from Los Angeles., live on ESPN.
Below, we’ll break down our Clippers vs. Lakers prediction and Friday NBA picks for PrizePicks. Use PrizePicks NBA to make picks on player projections and win real money if you’re right.
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Clippers vs. Lakers Prediction, Picks
The Clippers will be on a back-to-back for this one, coming off an impressive home victory vs the Denver Nuggets last night, 115-114.
It was the newly acquired G Bennedict Mathurin who stole the show last night. He scored 38 points on 12-22 shooting in 34 minutes off the bench for his new team last night. That was the most points by a reserve in his first home game with a team in NBA history, and the most points in a home debut by any Clipper ever.
The Lakers are finally healthy for the first time in seemingly forever, with no players listed on the injury report. Their trio of superstars in F Lebron James, G Austin Reaves, and G Luka Doncic have only played ten games together this season, the Lakers have gone 7-3 in those games.
The Lake Show currently sits in the fifth spot in a congested Western Conference playoff race, with only one game separating four teams from the third to the sixth seeds.
There’s no doubt that when healthy, this Lakers team can compete with any team in the league. “Yes” on the Lakers to hoist this year’s Larry O’Brien Trophy is currently returning a 22.22x payout on PrizePicks Team Picks.
Clippers vs. Lakers Spread, Over/Under
The Lakers enter Friday’s game as 7.5-point road favorites, returning a 1.36x payout on PrizePicks Team Picks if they win outright.
The Clippers are home underdogs with a 2.94x payout if they win, via PrizePicks Team Picks.
- Spread: Los Angeles Lakers -7.5 (1.96x payout)
- Over/Under: 224.5 (1.85x payout on over)
- Game Winner Payout: Lakers 1.36x | Clippers 2.94x
Team Picks payouts are live as of publishing and are subject to change.
Clippers vs. Lakers Injury Report
Let’s dive into the full Clippers vs. Lakers injury report for Friday, via NBA.com.
Clippers Injury Report
- Not yet submitted
Lakers Injury Report
- No players listed
Clippers vs. Lakers Prediction on Spread
Here are some stats to help you make your Clippers vs. Lakers prediction on the spread today.
- Clippers games are 29-26-0 (52.7%) to the under this season. However, on the second night of a back-to-back, that record is 6-3-0 (66.6%), the sixth-worst mark in the league.
- Two of the three matchups between these teams have ended with 216 and 201 total points scored, well below the projected over/under of 224.5.
- With two veteran-laden rosters, it’s no surprise that neither team is particularly pacey. The Lakers are 20th in the NBA in pace, while the Clippers are 28th.
- Free points could be difficult to come by tonight as both teams do a great job of keeping their opponents off the foul line. The Lakers give up the third-fewest free throws per game (21.6) while the Clippers give up the fourth-fewest (21.7).
Clippers vs. Lakers NBA Picks, Stats for PrizePicks Today
Here are two of the top Clippers vs. Lakers to consider for PrizePicks today. Player projections via the PrizePicks real-money NBA game.
Clippers SF Kawhi Leonard vs. Lakers Projection: 25.5 Pts
- The Claw is averaging 27.8 points per game this season and 28.1 points per game so far in February.
- He has scored 26 points or more in 22 of his 42 games played this year (52.3%).
- This is a Lakers defense that is allowing opponents to shoot 48.8% from the field this season, the fourth-highest percentage in the league, only above the Kings, Jazz, and Nets.
- They are also allowing opponents to shoot 36.4% from 3-point range, the ninth-highest percentage in the NBA. Kawhi is shooting 38.3% from deep this year on a career-high 7 attempts per game.
- This is a slight pace-up game for the Clippers, who rank 28th in the NBA in pace, compared to the Lakers, who rank 20th.
Lakers PG Luka Doncic vs. Clippers Projection: 45.5 Pts+Reb+Asts
- Doncic is averaging 49.2 points, rebounds, and assists (PRA) this season.
- He has had more than this PRA projecting in 29 of his 42 games this year (69%), including in two of his three outings vs the Clippers.
- The Clippers defense is giving up the seventh-highest opponent 3-point percentage this season at 36.6%. Luka averages 10.3 attempts from deep this season and is shooting 36.4% at home from behind the arc.
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Make Clippers vs. Lakers NBA Picks on PrizePicks
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