Orlando Magic vs LA Clippers
When: 3/30/2021 10:00 PM
Where: Staples Center

TV: 10:00 PM
LINE: -550
PREDICTION: Orlando Magic, LA Clippers

Oddsmakers currently have LA Clippers listed as 10.5 point favorites versus Orlando Magic while the game’s total is sitting at 218.5.

In stride and feeling good about the road ahead, especially early in a stretch of nine consecutive home games, the Los Angeles Clippers will run into the definition of a trap game Tuesday when they face the Orlando Magic.

The Clippers, coming off an impressive 129-105 home victory over the Milwaukee Bucks on Monday, will play Thursday against the Denver Nuggets, who rode them out of last season’s playoffs.

In between, they will square off with the rebuilding Magic, who have lost 13 of their past 15.

Orlando is also 0-2 after Nikola Vucevic was traded to the Chicago Bulls and Evan Fournier was dealt with the Boston Celtics.

With the always-focused Kawhi Leonard leading the way, the chances of a Clippers letdown are slim. Leonard was at the heart of a balanced attack from the starters Monday as the Clippers defeated the Bucks without Serge Ibaka (back), Patrick Beverley (knee), and Paul George (foot).

Even newly acquired point guard Rajon Rondo was out with right adductor soreness while scoring backup guard Lou Williams was shipped off to the Atlanta Hawks.

Four Clippers starters had at least 20 points in Monday’s victory, with Marcus Morris Sr. scoring 25, Leonard 23, Luke Kennard 21, and Reggie Jackson 20. Morris was making just his ninth start of the season while Kennard was starting for the eighth time.

“We need everybody engaged, even guys who are not getting minutes,” Leonard said after Monday’s victory. “They’re watching the game, seeing details of what (they) need to get better at or whoever is on the floor. Just listen to what they’re saying and if I’m seeing the same thing when I’m out there.”

It is a commitment to unity that has helped the Clippers to seven victories in eight games, all without Ibaka on the floor.

“Everything we have been working on and was frustrated about earlier in the season, we’re finally starting to see it come together,” first-year Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue said.

The Magic are a long way from executing at a high level. They will be playing their second consecutive game at Los Angeles after falling 96-93 to the Lakers on Sunday.

Orlando will have to improve on the effort it gave against the Clippers on Jan. 29, when the Magic were dominated at home 116-90. Vucevic and Fournier were on the floor in that contest, but the duo scored only a combined 18 points on 7-of-26 shooting.

Now the Magic need to have faith in newcomers such as Wendell Carter Jr., Otto Porter Jr., and R.J. Hampton, all three of whom made their team debut off the bench Sunday against the Lakers.

Hampton scored 10 points, Carter had eight points with eight rebounds and Porter had five points.

“Everybody came out and competed, (it’s) just fine-tuning some little things,” Hampton said. “We got a lot of new guys. We are a very young team. Down the stretch, those key plays that we got to make, I think over the course of (the rest of) the season, we will definitely do that.”

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Philadelphia 76ers vs Denver Nuggets
When: 3/30/2021 9:00 PM
Where: Ball Arena, Denver, CO

TV: 9:00 PM
LINE: -175
PREDICTION: Philadephia 76ers, Denver Nuggets

Oddsmakers currently have Denver Nuggets listed as 4 point favorites versus the Philadelphia 76ers while the game’s total is sitting at 221.

After one game with Aaron Gordon in the mix, it looks like the Denver Nuggets made a smart move in acquiring the young forward.

The second test comes Tuesday night when Denver hosts the Philadelphia 76ers in a matchup of teams with title aspirations.

The Nuggets increased their chances when they acquired Gordon from Orlando last week, bolstering their frontcourt and adding another scoring option as well as a versatile defender. Gordon made his Denver debut Sunday night in a win over Atlanta and he came away impressed with his new squad.

“I see no limits for this team. It looks like we have all the pieces for this team, we have depth,” Gordon said after scoring 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting in 21 minutes. “We’re covered in a lot of different spots. As long as we’re working together there’s no stopping us.”

The Nuggets expect there to be some growing pains as Gordon becomes integrated into the system, but they also know there isn’t much time left in the regular season. Denver has only 26 games left, and in the tight Western Conference and a constant shifting of positioning, time is not a luxury.

“Our guys understand with (26) games to go, you look at the standings, it’s going to be a really tight race and every game counts, but It’s not going to happen overnight,” coach Michael Malone said. “Aaron Gordon is not going to fit in seamlessly tonight and be like, ‘yep, we got this,’ it’s going to take a little bit of time and we understand that.”

The Nuggets face a Philadelphia team that sits atop the Eastern Conference but with little margin for error. The Sixers are 10-2 in March but are in a stride-for-stride race with Brooklyn, which was 9-2 in the month heading into Monday night’s game with league-worst Minnesota.

Philadelphia players are well aware of the standings.

“I look at the standings, I know where we are, I know the race,” Tobias Harris said. “I’d be lying to you if I said I don’t look at the standings. I look at the standings every day; it is just something that I do.”

Being locked in such a tight battle with the Nets doesn’t bother Harris.

“I look at the standings and say, ‘We need a win,'” he said. “If it was any different, I would look at it the same exact way.”

The Sixers have stayed atop the Eastern Conference despite not having Joel Embiid for most of the month. Embiid was having an MVP-caliber season before a bone bruise in his left knee has sidelined him for the past eight games. He’s also likely to miss Tuesday’s game, too.

They had a four-game winning streak snapped Saturday night at the Los Angeles Clippers, the fourth of a six-game road trip that has touched down in New York (Knicks), the Bay Area (Warriors), Los Angeles (Lakers and Clippers), Denver and finishes in Cleveland on Thursday night.

Denver, meanwhile, is settling in for plenty of home games. Sunday’s win over the Hawks was the start of having seven of eight at home, with only a one-game trip to Los Angeles to face the Clippers in the next two weeks.

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Golden State At Houston
When: 9:00 PM ET, Monday, May 25, 2015
Where: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
TV: 9 p.m. ET, ESPN
PREDICTION: Warriors 112, Rockets 95
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Oddsmakers currently have the Warriors listed as 4½-point favorites versus the Rockets, while the game’s total is sitting at 214.

Golden State won its last outing, a 115-80 result against the Rockets on May 23. The Warriors covered in that game as a +1.5-point underdog, while the 195 combined points took the game UNDER the total.

Curry’s sharpshooting has been superb this postseason and he has made 64 3-pointers to surpass the single-season playoff record set by Reggie Miller (58 in 2000) while also becoming the first player to drain five or more in five consecutive postseason games. “Just trying to have ultimate confidence every time I step foot on the floor that every shot you take is going to go in and just enjoy the moment,” Curry told reporters. Curry has 107 points in the series, third-best all-time in a player’s first three conference finals games behind Rick Barry (116) and Amar’e Stoudemire (112).

Team record: 78-17 SU,53-41-1 ATS
Current Streak: won 6 straight games.
Golden State is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games
Golden State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Golden State’s last 10 games
Golden State is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games on the road

Houston will need a much better effort from NBA runner-up James Harden if it is to rebound from the worst home postseason defeat in franchise history. The star guard was just 3-of-16 shooting while scoring a playoff-low 17 points and struggled while being defended primarily by Andre Iguodala and Harrison Barnes after having little trouble scoring against Klay Thompson over the first two games. “We were too relaxed, we were too comfortable,” Harden told reporters of the club’s woeful effort. “We were playing downhill the majority of the game. Trying to come back, trying to fight. The fight wasn’t enough.”

Team record: 64-33 SU,57-40 ATS
Current Streak: lost 3 straight games.
Houston is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
The total has gone OVER in 14 of Houston’s last 21 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Houston’s last 5 games
Houston is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games at home

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Utah At Golden State
When: 10:30 PM ET, Saturday, March 21, 2015
Where: Oracle Arena, Oakland, California
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, ROOT (Utah), CSN Bay Area (Golden State)
PREDICTION: Warriors 101, Jazz 88
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Oddsmakers currently have the Warriors listed as 10-point favorites versus the Jazz, while the game’s total is sitting at 195.

The Warriors were a 112-96 winner in their most recent outing at home against the Pelicans. They covered the -13.5-point spread as favorites, while the total score (208) made winners of OVER bettors.

Golden State is riding an 11-game home winning streak and showed off its depth again Friday while winning easily despite being without Klay Thompson (ankle) and getting a 4-of-17 shooting effort from Stephen Curry. Harrison Barnes is picking up his level of play in two games without Thompson and totaled 47 points in those contests while going for 20 or more in back-to-back regular season games for the first time in his career. The Warriors might not need to rest any players on the back-to-back after holding everyone to 27 minutes or fewer Friday.

Team record: 55-13 SU,39-28-1 ATS
Current Streak: won 4 straight games.
Golden State is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Golden State’s last 5 games
Golden State is 15-6-1 ATS in its last 22 games at home
Golden State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

The Jazz were a 80-73 winner in their most recent outing on the road against the Lakers. They covered the -4.5-point spread as favorites, while the total score (153) made winners of UNDER bettors.

Utah squandered its hopes for a postseason spot with a 17-33 record through Feb. 6 but never quit on the season and has since gone 14-4. “I think this run has been good for us,” Gobert told the Salt Lake Tribune. “It’s important for us to get respect in the league. It’s important that we get respect from everyone, and that’s a big thing that’s important to us.” The Jazz allowed only one opponent to reach 100 points in those 18 games and are coming off an 80-73 win at the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday in which they blocked eight shots and recorded 11 steals.

Team record: 31-37 SU,38-29-1 ATS
Utah is 8-4 ATS in its last 12 games
Utah is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Utah’s last 12 games
Utah is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games on the road

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Jan. 10 – Contracts guaranteed for rest of season.

Feb. 13-15 – All-Star weekend, New York.

Feb. 19 – Trade deadline (3 p.m. EST).

April 15 – Last day of regular season.

April 18 – Playoffs begin.

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Jan. 10 – Contracts guaranteed for rest of season.

Feb. 13-15 – All-Star weekend, New York.

Feb. 19 – Trade deadline (3 p.m. EST).

April 15 – Last day of regular season.

April 18 – Playoffs begin.

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Kidd-Gilchrist 6-15 4-4 16, Zeller 3-5 0-0 6, Biyombo 1-2 7-10 9, Walker 4-11 3-3 12, Henderson 7-14 2-2 16, Maxiell 2-4 0-0 4, Williams 1-4 0-0 3, Neal 3-7 4-5 10, Hairston 1-6 0-0 2, Roberts 1-7 2-2 5, Vonleh 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-76 22-26 83.

HOUSTON (102)

Ariza 4-12 1-1 10, Smith 2-7 0-2 5, Howard 5-5 1-3 11, Beverley 5-16 0-0 14, Harden 12-19 4-4 36, Motiejunas 5-13 2-2 12, Brewer 2-8 0-0 5, Terry 2-4 0-0 5, Dorsey 0-0 1-2 1, Canaan 0-2 0-0 0, Johnson 1-1 0-0 3, Papanikolaou 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 38-88 9-14 102.

Charlotte 25 20 23 15- 83

Houston 23 24 29 26-102

3-Point Goals-Charlotte 3-18 (Walker 1-3, Roberts 1-3, Williams 1-4, Henderson 0-2, Neal 0-2, Hairston 0-4), Houston 17-43 (Harden 8-11, Beverley 4-12, Johnson 1-1, Terry 1-1, Smith 1-2, Brewer 1-4, Ariza 1-9, Motiejunas 0-1, Canaan 0-2). Fouled Out-None. Rebounds-Charlotte 54 (Kidd-Gilchrist 8), Houston 52 (Howard 8). Assists-Charlotte 15 (Walker 5), Houston 22 (Harden 6). Total Fouls-Charlotte 17, Houston 25. Technicals-Houston defensive three second. A-18,276 (18,023).

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Kidd-Gilchrist 6-15 4-4 16, Zeller 3-5 0-0 6, Biyombo 1-2 7-10 9, Walker 4-11 3-3 12, Henderson 7-14 2-2 16, Maxiell 2-4 0-0 4, Williams 1-4 0-0 3, Neal 3-7 4-5 10, Hairston 1-6 0-0 2, Roberts 1-7 2-2 5, Vonleh 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-76 22-26 83.

HOUSTON (102)

Ariza 4-12 1-1 10, Smith 2-7 0-2 5, Howard 5-5 1-3 11, Beverley 5-16 0-0 14, Harden 12-19 4-4 36, Motiejunas 5-13 2-2 12, Brewer 2-8 0-0 5, Terry 2-4 0-0 5, Dorsey 0-0 1-2 1, Canaan 0-2 0-0 0, Johnson 1-1 0-0 3, Papanikolaou 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 38-88 9-14 102.

Charlotte 25 20 23 15- 83

Houston 23 24 29 26-102

3-Point Goals-Charlotte 3-18 (Walker 1-3, Roberts 1-3, Williams 1-4, Henderson 0-2, Neal 0-2, Hairston 0-4), Houston 17-43 (Harden 8-11, Beverley 4-12, Johnson 1-1, Terry 1-1, Smith 1-2, Brewer 1-4, Ariza 1-9, Motiejunas 0-1, Canaan 0-2). Fouled Out-None. Rebounds-Charlotte 54 (Kidd-Gilchrist 8), Houston 52 (Howard 8). Assists-Charlotte 15 (Walker 5), Houston 22 (Harden 6). Total Fouls-Charlotte 17, Houston 25. Technicals-Houston defensive three second. A-18,276 (18,023).

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Kidd-Gilchrist 6-15 4-4 16, Zeller 3-5 0-0 6, Biyombo 1-2 7-10 9, Walker 4-11 3-3 12, Henderson 7-14 2-2 16, Maxiell 2-4 0-0 4, Williams 1-4 0-0 3, Neal 3-7 4-5 10, Hairston 1-6 0-0 2, Roberts 1-7 2-2 5, Vonleh 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 29-76 22-26 83.

HOUSTON (102)

Ariza 4-12 1-1 10, Smith 2-7 0-2 5, Howard 5-5 1-3 11, Beverley 5-16 0-0 14, Harden 12-19 4-4 36, Motiejunas 5-13 2-2 12, Brewer 2-8 0-0 5, Terry 2-4 0-0 5, Dorsey 0-0 1-2 1, Canaan 0-2 0-0 0, Johnson 1-1 0-0 3, Papanikolaou 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 38-88 9-14 102.

Charlotte 25 20 23 15- 83

Houston 23 24 29 26-102

3-Point Goals-Charlotte 3-18 (Walker 1-3, Roberts 1-3, Williams 1-4, Henderson 0-2, Neal 0-2, Hairston 0-4), Houston 17-43 (Harden 8-11, Beverley 4-12, Johnson 1-1, Terry 1-1, Smith 1-2, Brewer 1-4, Ariza 1-9, Motiejunas 0-1, Canaan 0-2). Fouled Out-None. Rebounds-Charlotte 54 (Kidd-Gilchrist 8), Houston 52 (Howard 8). Assists-Charlotte 15 (Walker 5), Houston 22 (Harden 6). Total Fouls-Charlotte 17, Houston 25. Technicals-Houston defensive three second. A-18,276 (18,023).

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James is expected to miss two weeks after tests revealed injuries to the superstar’s left knee and lower back.

The Cavaliers announced in a release Thursday that multiple examinations, including an MRI, showed that James has knee and back strains. The tests were performed Wednesday before the Cavs lost their third straight game, a 96-80 loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

James, who has missed Cleveland’s past two games, will undergo several forms of treatment, including anti-inflammatories, the team said. The four-time MVP has never missed more than five straight games in his professional career; if the two-week timetable holds up, his absence could reach 10 games or more.

The Cavs play in Charlotte on Friday, host Dallas on Sunday, visit Philadelphia on Monday, are back home to meet Houston on Wednesday — then head out for a five-game road trip against Western Conference clubs. Cleveland is 0-3 this season when James does not play.

James aggravated his nagging knee injury on Christmas Day in Miami while jumping over a row of courtside seats. He acknowledged that the knee has been “hurting pretty much all year” on Wednesday, one day after his 30th birthday.

“I’ve been playing with it, and it goes away and comes back,” he said. “So, the one in Miami kind of reaggravated it when I came out of the game in the third quarter.”

Even though James was not required to speak to the media Wednesday because he was out of the lineup, he made himself available to answer a slew of questions in the locker room before the Bucks game about his health and the controversy surrounding his commitment to staying in Cleveland beyond this summer.

“I’m here to build something great in the present and in the future, and that’s the reason I’m back,” James said. “I got no other reason to have to continue to talk about things that’s so outlandish. I’m here. This is where I’ll be, and this is where I’m comfortable at.”

The Cavs were also without Kevin Love (back spasms) and Shawn Marion (sore left ankle) on Wednesday, making for another challenging night for Cleveland while playing the second leg of a back-to-back. Brandon Knight scored 26 points, and the Bucks led most of the way in the win.

A preseason favorite to contend for the NBA title, the Cavaliers (18-14) have lost four of their past five games — a stretch that has fueled widespread speculation about first-year coach David Blatt’s job security.

James said that he and the team simply must stay the course.

“Just stay even keel and knowing that there’s always sunshine on the other side of the mountain, man,” James said. “I don’t get too high or too low, especially in the NBA season. It’s too long, it’s too many emotions, it’s too many things, it’s too many storylines that if you let yourself get involved in it too much that it can bother you mentally, and I’ve been able to just stay away from it.”

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