Oklahoma City Thunder vs Los Angeles Clippers Prediction, 1/22/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Oklahoma City Thunder vs Los Angeles Clippers

Date: Friday, January 22, 2021

Location: STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, CA

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma

Odds/Point Spread: Oklahoma City (+6.5)

The Oklahoma City Thunder (6-7) head to STAPLES Center on Friday where they'll take on the Los Angeles Clippers (11-4). Oklahoma City opens this game as 6.5-point dogs. The O/U is set at 226.

The Oklahoma City Thunder stepped onto the hardwood against the Denver Nuggets and ended up losing by a score of 119-101 in their last game. Oklahoma City finished the game having earned a 41.9% field goal percentage (36 out of 86) and buried 14 of their 43 3-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Thunder made 15 of their 23 shots for a rate of 65.2%. Pertaining to grabbing boards, they earned 41 with 9 of them being of the offensive variety. They also distributed 22 assists for the contest as well as earning 8 steals and 4 rejections. In reference to defending, Oklahoma City allowed the other team to shoot 43.8% from the field on 46 of 105 shooting. Denver distributed 29 dimes and had 11 steals in the game. Additionally, the Nuggets snagged 58 rebounds (18 offensive, 40 defensive) and had 3 blocked shots. Denver went 92.9% when shooting free throws by knocking down 13 of 14 attempts. They knocked down 14 out of their 42 attempts from 3-point land.

Luguentz Dort is a player who was a major contributor for the matchup. He accumulated 20 points on 8 of 11 shooting. He played for 24:35 minutes played and totaled 5 boards. Dort shot 72.7% from the floor and also dished out 3 assists. One more player that was a major contributor in this contest for the Thunder was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He had 5 rebounds and earned 7 assists. He walked away from this one shooting 45.5% from the floor for the matchup via 5-of-11 (14 points). Overall, Gilgeous-Alexander played 27:13 minutes.

Oklahoma City heads into this one with a record of 6-7 this year. They lose possession by turning the ball over 15.1 times per game and as a basketball team are committing 18.8 personal fouls every game. As a unit, Oklahoma City is pulling down 44.7 rebounds per game and has accounted for 289 dimes on the year, which is 30th in the league in terms of passing. The Thunder are shooting 33.0% on shots from 3-point land (168 of 509) and 71.9% from the free throw line. They are averaging 105.6 pts per contest (27th in the NBA) on 44.6% from the field. Defensively, the Thunder are able to force 12.8 turnovers every game and they draw 19.7 personal fouls. They are ranked 12th in the NBA in giving up assists to the opposition with 330 relinquished on the campaign. The Thunder defense is giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 46.0% (166 of 256) and they relinquish 50.0 boards per contest as a group. They concede 35.6% on 3-point attempts and they are ranked 21st in the league in points per game allowed (112.6).

When they last stepped on the court, the Los Angeles Clippers walked away with a victory by a final of 115-96 against the Sacramento Kings. The Clippers were able to pull down 42 defensive rebounds and 6 offensive rebounds totaling 48 in the game. They also rejected 6 shots while recording 14 steals for the matchup. The Kings had 15 personal fouls in the matchup which got the Clippers to the charity stripe for a total of 18 attempts. They were able to convert 17 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 94.4%. When discussing shooting from beyond the arc, Los Angeles buried 16 of their 35 tries (45.7%). At the conclusion of this game, the Clippers shot 41 for 86 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 47.7%. The Clippers permitted the Kings to make 39 of their 86 attempts from the field which left them shooting 45.3% in the matchup. They shot 46.4% from beyond the perimeter by shooting 13 out of 28 and finished the game at 5 out of 12 from the charity stripe (41.7%). Regarding rebounding, Los Angeles permitted Sacramento to get 39 in total (4 offensive).

Kawhi Leonard ended up being important for the Clippers for the game. He made 13 out of 22 for this contest for a rate of 59.1%, which had him finishing with 32 points. Leonard pulled down 3 rebounds in his 34:59 mins of playing time and tallied 5 dimes in this matchup. One more player who was a determining factor for Los Angeles was Paul George. He finished with 19 points in his 32:23 minutes on the court by going 8 out of 14 from the floor in this game. George wrapped this one up going 57.1% from the field while earning 12 assists and 7 rebounds.

Los Angeles has a mark of 11-4 so far this season. When it comes to executing on offense, the Clippers are connecting on 48.6% from the floor, which ranks them 4th in basketball. Los Angeles has scored 1,723 pts on the campaign (114.9 per contest) and they snag 42.3 rebounds per game. Their rate of earning assists is at 25.1 times per contest (14th in the league) and they are losing possession via turnover 14.3 times per contest. The Clippers have committed 20.7 personal fouls per game and they hit 83.6% from the charity stripe. The Clippers on the defensive end are ranked 8th in basketball in PPG given up with 107.8. The Los Angeles defense concedes 36.9% on 3-point attempts (192 of 521) and their opposition knocks down 77.6% of their free throw shots. They give up 23.7 dimes and 40.3 rebounds every game, which is ranked 10th and 1st in the league. They are able to force 14.9 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 46.8% from the field (21st in basketball).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Los Angeles (-6.5)

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