The 16-57 Pacers will host the 37-36 Clippers tonight at 7 PM EST. The Clippers have listed Jordan Miller as Questionable, while Bradley Beal and Yanic Konan Niederhauser are Out. The Pacers have listed Obi Toppin as Questionable, and have Aaron Nesmith as Probable.
The Clippers are 8.5-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook with the total for this game set at 230.5 points.
Pacers vs. Clippers prediction, preview
The Clippers come into this one looking far more coherent than their record alone suggests. They’re 37-36 and have won three straight. What stands out most is how the current version of their offense fits together. Kawhi Leonard is still their main weapon, but this is not a one-man operation. Newly acquired Darius Garland gives them a true playmaker who can create advantages early in possessions, which keeps Kawhi from having to initiate every action. Their last two games illustrate this clearly: Garland had 24 against Toronto after dropping 15 and 6 assists against Milwaukee, while Kawhi posted 27 and 28 in those games. Brook Lopez has also given them real structure as a pick-and-pop big and interior anchor and he’s done for most of his late-stage career, and the bench has had more life lately than it usually gets credit for. Bennedict Mathurin just scored 23 off the bench against Toronto, Isaiah Jackson added 12, and the second unit totaled 52 points in that game. Stylistically, this team is not built around overwhelming pace. It wants to win by getting to clean actions, spacing the floor enough for Kawhi and Garland to attack mismatches, and then defending with length and discipline. The Clippers are 10th in opponent PPG allowed, 10th in opponent APG allowed, and 5th in opponent rebounds allowed. Tyronn Lue’s fingerprints are all over that balance. Lately the Clippers have looked more willing to trust bench scoring and less dependent on grinding every possession through the starters, which is a big reason the offense has felt less top-heavy over this recent stretch. The biggest area for improvement is still offensive consistency against set defenses; when the threes are not falling, they can look a little too methodical. But right now the roster fit is clean.
Indiana is operating from a much shakier foundation, and their record shows it. The Pacers are 16-57 and have dropped ten straight at home. The core problem is that their roster fit has been wrecked by absences, especially Tyrese Haliburton being out for the season. Ivica Zubac is also done for the year after only five starts with Indiana. Without Haliburton, Indiana loses the player who would normally organize the pace, tilt help defenders, and enable the role players. What is left is fragmented. Pascal Siakam becomes the main scorer and bailout option, Andrew Nembhard has to absorb more creation, and Jarace Walker and Aaron Nesmith have to provide more scoring than they ideally should. That said, there are still signs of life in the rotation. Siakam’s season-high 37 in the win over Orlando was promising, with Walker scoring 20 and Nembhard posting 14 assists. The issue is sustainability. Two nights later, the Lakers scored 137 on them, and Indiana again struggled to get enough stops early and spent the night chasing the game. Indiana is 26th in opponent PPG allowed, 29th in opponent rebounds allowed, and 13th in opponent APG allowed. So the Pacers still have some offensive ideas but the team does not have enough defensive backbone or lineup stability to turn that into reliable, consistent basketball. The coaching challenge is obvious: manufacture enough structure to survive without your main organizer. The Pacers likely knew this heading into the season, so it’s not all gloomy. They’ll get Haliburton back next season and should be a much stronger presence in the East.
Pacers vs. Clippers pick, best Bet
Best Bet: LA Clippers Moneyline -380
These teams played each other just once this season, with Leonard dropping 29 points on 55% shooting in only 23 minutes. The Clippers won by 23 points, and I’m expecting them to stomp the Pacers once again.
