The Los Angeles Clippers clash against the Utah Jazz Friday night during a very short road trip inside the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. They tip it off at 9:30pm. Betonline has installed the visiting Clippers as a 3 1/.2 favorite (-160).

 

Los Angeles Clippers Betting Preview

 

The Clippers (1-0) came out of the gate swinging and put forth a nice effort in a 123-111 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, in which they easily covered the 9 1/2-point spread. 

 

They have a ton of talent on their roster and expectations are huge for them this season. They believe they have the talent and the depth to make a deep run into the playoffs. They are placed on offense by two perirenal All-Star players in Paul George and Kawhi Leonard, who combine to make a deadly combination on the floor. 

 

George pumped in 27 points and Leonard added 23 to lead five players in double-digit scoring in the opener. Both players are a threat to put the ball on the floor and go right to the rim. They can score with the best of them and look for them to push the tempo and the pace in this one. They need to score around 110-115 in this one. Utah will try to slow them down, but we think the 1-2 punch of George and Leonard will be enough. 

 

Both players are in the last year of the contracts, respectively, so their window to win a championship is dwindling. The believe this could be their season. 

 

Utah Jazz Betting Preview

 

The Jazz (0-1) got blasted in the season opener as they dropped a 130-114 contest to the Sacramento Kings. They could not keep up with the Kings style of offense and they did a horrible job of guarding the perimeter. They are now going up against a team in the Clippers that can also get up and down the court, so the Jazz must be wary of that. 

 

On offense, the Jazz are led by veteran point guard Jordan Clarkson, who opened the season by netting a team-high 24 points in the win. He along with talented power forward Lauri Markkanen pose a nice tandem. Markkanen netted a career-high 25 points last season -- his first with the Jazz -- after spending the first four seasons of his career with the Chicago Bulls, followed up by a one-year stint with the Cleveland Cavaliers. 

 

Look for the Jazz to also open things up on the floor as they are a very aggressive team that loves to shoot from beyond the arc, Utah went 3-1 against the Clippers last season. 

 

Game Odds, Series Trends and Free Pick 

 

The Clippers posted a solid mark on the road last season, as they finished 21-20 but they had issues in Utah, losing both their road games against the Jazz. They ranked 18^th in league, as they scored around 113 points per game, while the Clippers allowed around 113.1 which was good for 12^th in the league. The Jazz went 3-1 overall last season and really have had their number. 

 

Leonard and George might get theirs, but the Jazz have the Clippers number.