Finally, the LA Clippers knew which team exactly they’d prepare against for the second round after the Denver Nuggets outlasted the Utah Jazz in the first round. Check out our preview of the series opener between the Clippers and the Nuggets below.
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Betting Preview for the Denver Nuggets vs LA Clippers NBA Playoffs Round 2 Game 1 on September 3, 2020
Where: Walt Disney World, Orlando
When: Thursday, September 3, 2020, 9:00 PM ET
Line: Denver Nuggets (+8.5) vs LA Clippers (-8.5) – view all 2020 NBA lines
TV Broadcast: TNT
Betting on the Denver Nuggets (+8.5)
Regular Season Record: 46-27
The Nuggets have every reason to celebrate after sneaking out of the first round despite being down 3-1 to the Utah Jazz at one point. The Nuggets certainly would have not seen the light of the second round without the exploits of Jamal Murray, who put up one Jordan-esque performance after another in the first round. Murray averaged 31.6 points and shot 55.0 percent from the field in the Utah series. The Clippers are waiting for Murray in the second round, where Kawhi Leonard and Paul George will cover him. With an array of elite defenders whom the Clippers can assign to Murray, the Nuggets need their other players to deliver. Among them is Nikola Jokic, who should be confident in carving his way past the Clippers’ frontline after surviving a seven-game matchup with arguably the best defensive center in the league in Rudy Gobert. Jokic averaged 26.3 points against Utah in the previous round.
The Nuggets are 4-0 against the spread in their last four games.
Betting on the LA Clippers (-8.5)
Regular Season Record: 49-23
Like the Nuggets, the Clippers have to go through some rough time in the first round, as it took them six games to finish off Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks. Kawhi Leonard was as dependable as ever in the first round, where he put up 32.8 points per game on 53.8 percent shooting from the field. The Clippers expect Leonard to be just as effective in the second round, but they need more from Paul George, who was out of his element in most games in the Dallas series. George averaged 18.5 points on just 35.8 percent shooting in the first round. That’s not what the Clippers expected of George when they traded for him last year. The Clippers are also expecting Ivica Zubac to make his presence felt after a quality showing in the previous round, wherein he averaged 11.2 points and 7.0 rebounds per game, while shooting 65.8 percent from the floor.
The Clippers are 7-3 against the spread in their last 10 games.
Writer’s Prediction
The Nuggets win, 118-115.
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