Oklahoma City Looks Tie Series at 1-1 With Clippers
Kevin Durant took a short break from the NBA playoffs on Tuesday to accept the NBA Most Valuable Player award. Durant thanked his teammates, coaches and mother. He called his mother the real MVP for all she did while he was growing up.
The four-time scoring champion however did not take long giving his speech, as he had to focus once again on the NBA playoffs.
The Oklahoma City Thunder is playing the Los Angeles Clippers in the semifinals of the NBA Western Conference. On Monday night, the Clippers routed the Thunder in Game 1 to take home court advantage.
Tonight, the two teams meet again for Game 2 and Durant knows he and his teammates must come out focused and gain a split in the first two games at home.
In Game 1, the offense for Los Angeles led by All-Star point guard Chris Paul rained down shots from three-point land all night on Oklahoma City.
The key now is whether the Thunder can response to the Clippers win in the first game and salvage a 1-1 split before heading to Tinsel town and the bright lights.
Paul’s shooting was one of the biggest reasons the Clippers were able to get out to a lead and rout the Thunder in Game 1.
The Clippers offense is No. 1 in the league that was cemented by the club in Game 1. Paul scored 32 points and hit 8 of his 9 shots from three-point territory. Paul’s offensive output is crucial to the Clippers playing well. If his game is on outside, it will open up the court inside for Bl
ake Griffin and DeAndre Jordan.
Over their past two games, the Clippers have scored over 120 points in each with the total cashing on the OVER in 8 of their past 10 games overall.
The Clippers are not a one-man show by any means, with Griffin second in scoring and JJ Redick and Jamal Crawford scoring at a 14 points and 17 points per game rate respectively.
Before anyone overlooks the Thunder, remember this team owned the second best record in the league during the regular season winning 59 games.
The Thunder are high scoring as well, with Durant leading the league in scoring this season and the OVER has cashed in 6 of the past 7 games overall for Oklahoma City.
However, the Thunder needs more involvement on offense from Reggie Jackson and Caron Butler. Superstars Durant and point guard Russell Westbrook cannot be expected to outscore a Clippers team by themselves.
This second game should be much more competitive as the Clippers are sure to have some sort of a letdown, while the Thunder will look to draw from the energy of their hometown fans to left their game.
The OVER has cashed in 6 of the past 7 games between the teams played in Oklahoma City.
The visiting team has covered the number in 5 of the past 7 games between the Thunder and Clippers.
Pick: Oklahoma City cannot go to Los Angeles down by two games. A split is a must. I like the Thunder less the points to cover and the OVER to cash out.
