NBA Odds, Picks, Predictions: Mavericks vs Clippers Betting Preview

Mavericks vs. Clippers Odds

The Dallas Mavericks head to the West Coast to take on the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday night in the second game of a five-game road trip.

Dallas began the road trip with a stop in Oklahoma City and came up short after defeating the Pelicans at home the night prior. The Mavericks have won eight of their last 10 games overall and have been slowly climbing up the standings in the Western Conference.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles returns to its home court riding a six-game losing streak in what is just its second home game in the last nine.

There are quite a few factors that will be playing a role in this Western Conference matchup, including some big names being listed on the injury report. Here is a look into the odds, as well as our pick and prediction for the Dallas Mavericks vs. the Los Angeles Clippers.

Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks have been on a tear, and unsurprisingly, MVP candidate Luka Doncic has been the main reason.

Doncic missed the Mavericks' most recent matchup against Oklahoma City and is once again listed on the injury report for this matchup. However, that game was the second game of a back-to-back and has often been a scenario in which he has missed some time. Now that Dallas has had some rest since that game, I expect him to be back on the floor.

That is obviously tremendous news for this matchup, as Doncic has put up otherworldly numbers of late that have sent Dallas flying up the Western Conference standings.

In his last nine appearances, Doncic is averaging 38.8 points, 10.7 rebounds and 9.1 assists. Dallas has won eight of those nine matchups, posting an Offensive Rating of 119.0 in that time.

Prior to that stretch, the Mavericks found themselves in 10th in the Western Conference. They now enter today in fourth in the West with their eyes set on closing the four-game gap between them and the No. 1 seed.

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Los Angeles Clippers

After surging all the way up to the fourth seed in the West roughly two weeks ago, the Clippers have suddenly plummeted in the standings and can't seem to figure anything out.

This Clippers team has been known for its hounding defense. However, that defensively philosophy has gone out the window during this six-game losing streak.

According to NBA.com the Clippers have posted a Defensive Rating of 120.0 in their most recent six games. That rating ranks 28th in the NBA during that time, and it is a significant increase from Los Angeles' season rating of 110.8.

That play on the defensive has been complimented with mediocre play on offense. The Clippers have seen their Offensive Rating plateau at 109.4 during their losing streak, a direct result of shooting 44.1% from the floor and 34.5% form behind the arc.

To make matters even worse, the Clippers will be without Paul George for this matchup, which tremendously affects their production on both ends of the floor.

Mavericks-Clippers Pick

The Clippers continue to trend in the wrong direction while the Mavericks look more and more like a title contender every day, and I think the latter is the trend that will continue in this matchup.

The Clippers' struggles on the defensive end of the floor are a massive concern, especially while going up against one of the hottest offenses in the NBA right now. The absence of George also puts Los Angeles in a bad spot, as in the 12 games that George has missed this season the Clippers are just 4-8 overall, averaging 107.1 points per game, and shooting 43.4% from the floor overall. (per StatMuse).

Additionally, the Clippers have struggled tremendously against the Western Conference this season, going 11-13 overall and 10-14 against the spread.

I like the Mavericks to cover the spread in this game on the road, and I would play it to +3.

Pick: Mavericks +4.