After taking the floor together for the first time Wednesday, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George look to improve to 2-0 as a duo when the LA Clippers host the Houston Rockets on Friday in the nightcap of ESPN’s NBA doubleheader. Houston is coming off a loss in Denver that snapped the Rockets’ eight-game winning streak.
- Houston Rockets vs Los Angeles Clippers (Matchup Report)
- Date/Time: November 22, 10:30 p.m. ET
- TV Coverage: ESPN
- Sportsbook Odds: Los Angeles -5 | O/U 232 (Line History)
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
Oddsmakers have made a 7.5-point adjustment from when the Rockets hosted the George-less Clippers last week as 2.5-point favorites. LA is favored for just the second time in the last nine meetings. The UNDER has been the popular choice for early bettors, plummeting to 227 from the opener of 232.
Houston News & Notes
James Harden has been unstoppable for Houston this season. Until Wednesday, that is. The Nuggets keyed their 105-95 win over the Rockets by holding Harden to 27 points — a feat that doesn’t sound that impressive until you consider the Houston sniper was averaging nearly 40 points a game coming into Wednesday and had scored at least 36 in eight straight contests. Denver often double-teamed Harden and even sent big man Nikola Jokic out high on several occasions to give him different looks.
So have the Nuggets provided a blueprint for the rest of the NBA on how to slow Harden and the Rockets’ attack? Russell Westbrook doesn’t seem convinced. “We had open shots. We just didn’t make them,” said Westbrook, who scored 25 points in the loss to Denver. “They got lucky,” added Harden. “They got away with one. We didn’t execute how we needed to.”
The Rockets certainly executed just fine when they faced the Clippers last week in Houston, when Harden lit up LA for 47 points in a 102-93 Rockets victory.
Los Angeles News & Notes
If you’ve been eager to see how the Kawhi Leonard-Paul George tandem would work in LA, you may need to wait a while to see their true potential. The duo combined to score 42 points, pull down 11 rebounds and hand out 11 assists in a 107-104 OT win over the Celtics on Wednesday, but neither seemed thrilled with their debut performance together.
“We’re going to have growing pains, and I think the most positive thing is we understood that,” said George. Added Leonard: “We’re both on a minutes restriction (neither played more than 40 minutes in the overtime game) so it’s hard to get a flow. Repetition is what we need right now.”
Even if Leonard and George aren’t on the same page yet, their presence on the court is going to create more opportunities for teammates. Patrick Beverley was the big beneficiary on Wednesday, taking advantage of several open looks to knock down four treys on his way to a 14-point, seven-assist and career-high 16-rebound performance. “(Leonard and George) get so much attention. It’s crazy,” Beverley told reporters.
Betting Pick: Rockets +5
LA’s in transition mode trying to figure out how to best utilize Leonard and George together, while the Rockets should be motivated to bounce back from Wednesday’s defeat.
- The UNDER is 20-6 in Houston’s last 26 road games.
- Los Angeles is 1-4 ATS in its last 5 games.
- The UNDER is 9-3 in Los Angeles’ last 12 games.
