The Los Angeles Clippers are coming off a morale-boosting win, and they will look to feed off that when they take on the Milwaukee Bucks on the road this Friday. The Bucks are no easy customers, and are among the favorite to win the championship, but can they avoid the upset? Or will the Clippers make it even between them and the Bucks this season? Check out our preview below of this Clippers-Bucks NBA matchup.
The Clippers are just happy that Paul George is finally back. After missing action for three months, George returned to active duty and played like he didn’t miss a bit in his first game back, scoring 34 points to lead the Clippers to a 121-115 home win over the Utah Jazz last Tuesday at home. It was the Clippers’ first win in six games, and they will look to sustain their momentum against the tough Milwaukee squad this Friday. The Clippers lost to Milwaukee back in February at home, 137-117, but the presence of George this time around will definitely make LA much more competitive in the rematch. Against the Jazz, Los Angeles nailed 15 threes on 36 attempts, which is a good sign for the Clippers, as the Bucks have just given up 16threes in their last game.
The Clippers are 5-4-1 against the spread in their last 10 trips to Milwaukee.
The Bucks rebounded from a 127-102 road loss to the Memphis Grizzlies by defeating the Philadelphia 76ers in Philly last Tuesday, 118-116. Giannis Antetokounmpo proved ti be unstoppable in that game, as the Greek Freak dropped 40 points on 16/24 shooting to go with 14 rebounds, six assists, and three blocks in 38 minutes. He is a matchup problem for the Clippers, who also didn’t know what to do with him in the first meeting. Antetokounmpo scored 28 points with a 10/12 performance from the foul line in the win against the Clippers, while Jrue Holiday and Bobby Portis scored 27 and 24 points, respectively. Milwaukee also got even deeper since then, with the addition of Serge Ibaka and the return of Brook Lopez. The Clippers just don’t have enough muscle to stand up to Milwaukee’s frontcourt.
The Bucks, who will play the Brooklyn Nets on the road this Thursday, are 4-0 against the spread in their last four home games.
