Darryn Peterson, AJ Dybantsa, Cameron Boozer, and Caleb Wilson are wrapping up their college regular seasons this weekend. One of them may be playing for the Indiana Pacers or Los Angeles Clippers next season.
At the trade deadline, the Pacers traded Bennedict Mathurin, Isaiah Jackson, two first-round picks, and a second round pick for Ivica Zubac. The Clippers will receive one of the first round picks this year if it lands within the 5-9 slots, while the Pacers have 1-4 and 10-30 protections.
My focus for tonight's game is on Bennedict Mathurin, a pending restricted free agent to be, in a matchup against his former team.
Let's get into my NBA Same Game Parlay Strategy Guide for Pacers vs. Clippers on Wednesday, March 4.
NBA Same Game Parlay Strategy Guide for Wednesday
The Angle: Mathurin Revenge Game
The Pacers made Mathurin the sixth overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft. He made an immediate impact, averaging 16.7 points and 4.1 rebounds per game while finishing fourth in Rookie of the Year voting and eighth in Sixth Man of the Year Voting.
Mathurin seemed like a natural fit with Haliburton, a natural facilitator. Then, the team acquired Pascal Siakam, who helped them reach the Eastern Conference Finals each of the last two seasons.
While they often played with a team-first mentality, their ceiling may have been a bit higher with a clear No. 1 scoring option or Mathurin emerging into a Big 3 with Haliburton and Siakam.
However, head coach Rick Carlisle had other ideas, as he and Mathurin seemed to clash at times. Mathurin started just 109 of a possible 237 games as a member of the Pacers.
Now with the Clippers, Mathurin has started one of eight games thus far, but he is averaging 18.8 points per game.
Mathurin has played 30 minutes in six of those games, while enjoying higher usage leading the bench unit. This season, his usage rate was 23.1% with the Pacers, and now it is up to 29.9% with the Clippers.
Mathurin has scored in double figures in six of eight games with the Clippers, including games of 38, 26, and 21 points. He will be going against his former teammates and coaches, who know him well tonight, but Mathurin knows their moves too.
Additionally, it is unclear which former teammates he will actually be facing, as Siakam, Aaron Nesmith, and Andrew Nembhard are all questionable as of this writing.
The Pacers are 23rd in defensive rating this season and 27th over their last 10 games.
With a strong incentive to lose tonight's game, they may not care whether Mathurin has a big game against them or not.
Mathurin has shown he is capable of it with nine 25-point games this season — with two of those coming as a member of the Clippers.
Additionally, Mathurin may get some easier looks tonight since he will likely be sharing his minutes with Darius Garland as he works back from injury.
Pick: Bennedict Mathurin Over 19.5 Points
The Contrarian SGP: Leonard Under, Clippers to Cover
Kawhi Leonard Under 27.5 Points
Like Mathurin, Kawhi Leonard will benefit if the Pacers rest their starters again.
However, if Mathurin takes the lead tonight, Leonard might not need to have a big scoring game in order for the Clippers to win.
Leonard is enjoying one of the best regular seasons of his career, as he has averaged 27.8 points on nearly 50/38/90 shooting splits.
However, Leonard has actually scored 28 points in just 19 of 46 (41%) games this season, as well as in four of his last 10 games.
In their last two games, the Clippers have defeated the Pelicans by 20 points and Warriors by 13 points, and Leonard scored 23 points in both games.
Additionally, if the Clippers win convincingly as expected tonight and pull away with a huge lead, expect Coach Lue to pull Leonard early in the fourth quarter.
Pick: Kawhi Leonard Under 27.5 Points
Clippers -12.5
The bottom-10 teams in the NBA are on a collective 40-game losing streak — and the Pacers are one of those teams.
The Pacers are responsible for six of those losses. They have lost six straight, and eight of their last 10 games.
The Pacers are also 2-8 against the spread in that span, and five of their losses have been by 13 points or more.
The Pacers have lost by 14 points 23 times this season, and a 24th may be in the cards tonight.
Pick: Clippers -12.5
Same Game Parlay Building Blocks (+475)
- Bennedict Mathurin Over 19.5 Points
- Kawhi Leonard Under 27.5 Points
- Clippers -12.5
Compounding Angle (+950)
- Bennedict Mathurin 25+ Points
- Kawhi Leonard Under 27.5 Points
- Clippers -12.5
Pacers vs Clippers Betting Odds
| Pacers Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+12.5 -105 | 227.5 -110o / -110u | +450 |
| Clippers Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-12.5 -115 | 227.5 -110o / -110u | -600 |
