Closing down tonight’s five-game NBA slate, the New York Knicks will be facing the Los Angeles Clippers.
This is the second and final matchup between these two cross-conference opponents this year. In the first matchup between them, the Knicks tallied a 123-111 win. This took place back on January 7th, but plenty has changed for both sides since this point.
Looking at the odds for tonight, the Knicks enter as 2.5-point favorites and hold -142 odds of winning outright on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Clippers hold +120 odds of getting the outright victory, with the game total set at 220.5.
Let’s dive into a preview and prediction for the Monday night matchup.
Knicks vs. Clippers Preview
The Knicks sit third in the Eastern Conference with a 41-24 record. They are looking to bounce back from a 110-97 loss to the Lakers in the previous game, but have won six of their last nine games played. On the season, New York has gone 36-30 against the spread, and the game total has remained under in 35 of the 65 games played.
Jalen Brunson leads the team with 26.2 points and 6.5 assists per game. Karl-Anthony Towns adds 19.8 points and a team-high 11.9 rebounds, while Mikal Bridges and OG Anunoby each produce at the wing positions. Josh Hart contributes 11.8 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 5.1 assists, setting the tone for this New York roster in a lot of ways. Mohamed Diawara and Jose Alvarado also play key roles in the rotation, while Miles McBride remains sidelined after core muscle surgery and Mitchell Robinson has been ruled out for tonight due to injury management.
The Knicks own the NBA’s third-best offensive rating, ranking ninth in scoring, 12th in field-goal percentage, fourth in three-point percentage, and 24th in pace. Defensively, New York ranks seventh in defensive rating, fifth in points allowed, sixth in opponent field-goal percentage, and 12th in opponent three-point accuracy.
The Los Angeles Clippers have slid to ninth place in the Western Conference with a 31-2 record on the season. After getting off to a 6-21 start to the season, the Clippers ripped off an impressive stretch in which they won 21 of their 28 games played. Despite climbing up the standings and playing high-level basketball, they elected to blow it up at the trade deadline and move on from James Harden and Ivica Zubac. They enter this matchup coming off a victory over the Grizzlies in the previous game and have won four of their last five games played.
Despite the roster turnover around him, Kawhi Leonard has continued to look like one of the best players in all of basketball. The two-time Finals MVP is averaging a career-high 27.9 points per game, along with 6.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists. Bennedict Mathurin arrived as the primary trade return of the Zubac deal and is averaging 18.4 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists across his first 11 games with the franchise. Darius Garland has suited up for three games after arriving as part of the return for Harden and is adding 15.0 points, 5.3 assists, and 3.3 rebounds per game. John Collins will miss tonight’s game with a neck strain, Bradley Beal remains sidelined with a hip fracture, and rookie Yanic Konan Niederhauser will miss time due to a Lisfranc issue. Derrick Jones Jr. and Brook Lopez also play key roles on the roster.
The Clippers are scoring at the seventh-worst rate in the NBA this season. They rank 12th in offensive rating, fifth in field goal percentage, 12th in three-point percentage, and 28th in pace this year. Defensively, Los Angeles ranks ninth in opponents points allowed, 19th in defensive rating, 11th in opponent field goal percentage, and 25th in opponent three-point percentage.
Knicks vs. Clippers Prediction, Best Bet
On the surface, it seemed as if the Clippers’ trade deadline decisions were essentially throwing away the outlook for the season. But Los Angeles continues to largely play above its heads and win games. The players brought back in these midseason moves have played with notable energy, and the team still has a spark to it. The Clips are facing a Knicks team on the second half of a back-to-back after they lost to the Lakers last night, and this is a spot where I like the Clippers’ outlook to produce an outright win.
The Knicks have struggled on the road all season, going 17-15 straight up. They also have gone 13-19 against the spread as an away team and 8-13 ATS as an away favorite this year. In contrast, the Clippers continue to find ways to win games they probably shouldn’t. The Clippers are 6-3 against the spread as home underdogs this year, 20-11 as an underdog overall, 19-11 ATS when coming off a win, and 15-14 ATS at home overall. Los Angeles has also covered the spread in 10 of its last 12 games entering tonight.
New York produced a 123-111 victory in the first matchup between these two teams. But this was still with Harden and Zubac as key parts of the team, so there is not a ton to take away from this matchup. New York was limited to just 97 points last night in a wire-to-wire Lakers win, and scoring has been a bit of an issue for the group of late.
With a rest advantage, home court advantage, and Kawhi Leonard continuing to play like one of the 10 best players in basketball, I like the Clippers to pull off the outright upset at home tonight. Los Angeles will have an advantage on the boards with Robinson sidelined, and the new additions have brought a noteworthy spark of energy to this team. Expect Mathurin to especially help set the tone in the early portions of this matchup against the team he has playoff experience against.
The Clippers have won 10 of their last 11 home games following a road win and have covered the spread in seven straight games following a win. Oddsmakers have continued to disrespect this Clippers team and seemingly have not learned their lesson just yet. Count on the Knicks having some tired legs on the second night of a back-to-back, especially having faced off against the Nuggets and Thunder before this. Count on Kawhi Leonard being ready for the challenge with the Clippers winning their fifth game in their past six to even up the season series with the Knicks.
