Warriors, Clippers Renew Rivalry
Klay Thompson and the Golden State Warriors will look to remain undefeated on Wednesday.
One of the Western Conference’s fiercest rivalries is renewed Wednesday night as the Golden State Warriors host the Los Angeles Clippers in a nationally televised Pacific Division showdown.
Tip-off at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif., is scheduled for 10:30 p.m. ET.
Once a matchup of basement dwellers, the Warriors-Clippers rivalry has become more relevant and more heated in recent years, something that was painstakingly obvious when the two sides met in a scrappy affair on Christmas Day last year. Can we expect similar when the two teams take to the hardwood on Wednesday?
The Story So Far
Under new head coach Steve Kerr, Golden State (3-0, 1-0 home) enters the game perfect through three games, with divisional wins over the Sacramento Kings and Los Angeles Lakers.
On Sunday, the Warriors earned a hard fought victory over the Portland Trail Blazers, an early win that sent something of a message out to the stacked Western Conference.
Having signed a big contract over the summer, Klay Thompson came up big against the Blazers, hitting the go-ahead shot with less than 10 seconds on the clock and finishing with 29 points. The current league-leading scorer will look to continue his solid play against the Clippers.
Despite poor shooting and inconsistent play, Los Angeles (3-1, 1-0 road) has managed to win three of its opening four.
The Clippers’ only definitive win came over its cross-hall rivals, the Lakers on Friday night. Close wins over the Oklahoma City Thunder and Utah Jazz alongside a loss to the Kings demonstrate that there’s plenty of room for improvement for Doc Rivers’ side.
Rivers will look to guide his highly-talented and highly-touted side to a marquee win over the Warriors on Wednesday.
Impact Players
Golden State’s backcourt tandem of Klay Thompson and Steph Curry has been nothing short of exceptional through the early part of the season.
Thompson leads the league with 29.7 points per game, while Curry is fifth with 25.3 points per contest. Curry has also added 7.0 assists, 6.7 rebounds and 3.7 steals per game for an all-around effort.
The Warriors have put together a concerted team effort outside of Thompson and Curry, with Andrew Bogut, Draymond Green and Marreese Speights amongst those putting in solid minutes.
The Clippers have a scoring threat of their own on the court every night. Blake Griffin in third in the league with 27.5 points per game and has added 7.8 boards per contest too.
Meanwhile, Chris Paul – who finished Monday’s win over Utah with the league’s first triple-double of the year – is averaging a double-double (15.8 points / 10.0 assists) through four games.
As a team the Clippers are shooting just 43 percent, a number that figures to rise as the likes of J.J. Redick, Jamal Crawford and Matt Barnes begin to find their range.
Head-to-Head
Golden State leads the all-time head-to-head series 114-84 and has had plenty of success against the Clippers over the past decade or so.
The Clippers have not won a regular season series against the Warriors since the 2005-06 season. In the eight campaigns since that victory, Golden State has won three series, while five have finished tied.
In fact, four of the last five seasons have seen the sides finish in a 2-2 tie, including last season in which both teams successfully defended home court.
Of course, the Clippers earned the most important victory of all, eliminating the Warriors in seven games during the first round of the playoffs a season ago.
Injury Report
Both teams could be boosted by returning players on Wednesday.
Los Angeles expects to have forward Glen Davis (groin) back on the floor, while Golden State is hopeful that All-Star forward David Lee (hamstring) will make his first appearance of the season against the Clippers.
The Clippers have yet to play well but have found ways to win.
Betting Report
Below you’ll find Betting Sports’ breakdown of odds and betting trends.
Los Angeles Clippers vs. Golden State Warriors odds for 11/05/2014
Moneyline: Playing at home and undefeated, Golden State opened as the favorite over Los Angeles.
The Warriors have won seven of their last eight games against the Clippers in Oakland, a trend they’ll be looking to improve on Wednesday night.
The Warriors have not started a season 5-0 since the 1994-95 season. Incidentally, that Warriors side finished the year 26-56.
Spread: The spread opened at 2.5 in favor of the Warriors.
Golden State (3-0-0 ATS) is perfect against the spread so far this season, while Los Angeles (0-4-0 ATS) has yet to cover the spread.
The Warriors are 7-1-0 ATS in their last eight home games against the Clippers.
Total: The total opened at 210.5.
Golden State (1-2-0 O/U) has favored the under so far this campaign, while the Clippers (2-2-0 O/U) have split the over/under evenly down the middle.
The total has gone over in 12 of the last 16 head-to-head meetings between the two teams.
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