The Golden State Warriors (1-0 SU, 1-0 ATS) finished last season on a 6-1 SU and ATS run over their last seven home games. The Warriors will try to pick up where they left off at home with a strong performance in their home opener against the Los Angeles Clippers (0-0 SU, 0-0 ATS)
- Date/Time: October 21, 10:00 p.m. ET
- Stadium: Chase Center
- TV Coverage: TNT
- Sportsbook Odds: Warriors -2.5 | O/U 225.5 points (Line History)
- Clippers vs. Warriors (Matchup Report)
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The Warriors opened as 2.5-point favorites in this matchup and have since moved up a point to Golden State -3.5. The movement on the total has been far more severe as heavy action on the OVER has moved the line to 228 points after it opened at 225.5 points. Los Angeles is 5-1 ATS in its last six road games at Golden State.
Los Angeles News & Notes
The Clippers overcame 0-2 SU series deficits against both the Dallas Mavericks and Utah Jazz last postseason to make their way into the Western Conference Finals. But after Kawhi Leonard tore his ACL in Game 4 against the Jazz, Los Angeles was no match for the healthy Phoenix Suns, losing that series in six.
Los Angeles did prove that it could still be competitive without Leonard with a 4-4 SU and 5-3 ATS record against the top two teams in the West with him sidelined. There is currently no timetable for Leonard’s return in 2022, so the pressure will be on Paul George to lead this team to success. Leonard’s absence will also give the rest of the team the chance to step up and shine.
Golden State News & Notes
The Warriors had a fantastic start to the season on Tuesday night in a 121-114 road win over the Los Angeles Lakers as 3.5-point road underdogs. The most impressive thing about the high-scoring win was that it came on a night when Stephen Curry wasn’t even at his best, scoring only 21 points and going 5-for-21 from the floor and 2-for-8 from three-point range. Six players scored at least 12 points in the win including a 20-point effort from Jordan Poole.
Curry still finished the night with a triple-double despite his offensive struggles as he recorded 10 assists and 10 rebounds. At times last year, it felt as though Curry had to take the offense on his back and have a monster game to give Golden State a chance to win. The star shooter will always be the team’s focal point on offense, but balanced scoring up and down the lineup would make his life a lot easier.
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Why Los Angeles Will Cover
Even without Kawhi Leonard, the Clippers still project to be a competitive playoff team in 2021-22. They will also play far better defense than the Lakers did on Tuesday night. A strong defensive effort and balanced scoring would put Los Angeles in a position to cover the spread or score an upset.
Why Golden State Will Cover
Stephen Curry doesn’t often string multiple bad shooting nights in a row together. After a bad night from the floor on Tuesday, Curry is likely to ride the momentum of the home crowd to a big night on offense on Thursday. The Leonard-less Clippers may have trouble keeping up if that is the case.
Computer Pick: Clippers +3
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Buy Sports Picks Now- Los Angeles is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games vs. Golden State.
- Golden State is 8-1 ATS over its last 9 games.
- The OVER is 6-2 in Golden State’s last 8 games.
