Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Clippers odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Friday’s Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Clippers sports betting odds and lines, with NBA picks, tips and best bets.

The Houston Rockets (11-4) face the Los Angeles Clippers (10-5) Friday night with tip-off coming just after 10:30 pm ET at Staples Center. We analyze the Rockets-Clippers odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.

Rockets at Clippers: Key injuries

Rockets:

C Tyson Chandler (rest) probable

Clippers:

SG Landry Shamet (ankle) out

Rockets at Clippers: Odds, lines, picks, and betting tips

NBA odds courtesy of BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports for a full set of today’s betting odds. Odds last updated at 8:15 a.m. ET.

Prediction

Clippers 120, Rockets 114

Moneyline (ML)

The Rockets are 11-4 on the moneyline while Los Angeles is 10-5. James Harden and Russell Westbrook clash with Paul George and Kawhi Leonard in a star-studded matchup.

Our pick is with the CLIPPERS (-200) but very, very close.

New to sports betting? A $10 wager on Los Angeles returns a profit of $5.00.

Line/Against the Spread (ATS)

Neither team has covered spreads well this year. Los Angeles is 8-7 overall against the spread while Houston is just 7-8. Houston on the road is a slightly worse 3-5 while Los Angeles is 7-3 at home and exceeds projections by 5.3 points per contest.

This makes the choice easy. Back LOS ANGELES (-4.5, -115). The Clippers could come close to or exceed 120 in this tilt and Los Angeles only needs to win by five or more points.

Over/Under (O/U)

The projected total is set at 226.5. It seems like a low number given both teams’ propensity to score. Houston averages a ton of points while Los Angeles can top 120 routinely. It will be dicey but the -115 for the OVER is a manageable number.

Want some action on this game? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting tips and advice, visit SportsbookWire.com.

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No, Brandon Ingram isn’t Kevin Durant, but he’s making the Pelicans’ Anthony Davis trade look so good

What a breakout!

Of all the “gonna tell my kids” memes — which are great, keep ’em coming — the one that made me stop in my tracks was all the comparisons made (probably in jest but whatever) by NBA fans between Brandon Ingram and Kevin Durant.

Durant, of course, is a once-in-a-generation player, who will end his career as one of the league’s greatest scorers.

That said, Ingram has broken out in a BIG way for the New Orleans Pelicans, who dealt for him as part of the Anthony Davis trade. He’s leading the Pelicans in scoring (25.6 ppg), is second in rebounds (7.4 rpg), and is dishing at a career-best 4.1 apg. Plus, he’s swatting a shot per game and hitting 45 percent (!) of his 5.5 three-point attempts.

🗣️ "ALLOW THAT MAN TO DO WHAT HE DOES."@B_Ingram13 in the fourth quarter just wasn't fair pic.twitter.com/8pHv3FQmZR

— New Orleans Pelicans (@PelicansNBA) November 22, 2019

Brandon Ingram threads the needle 😱#WontBowDown pic.twitter.com/sI2x2ujddO

— NBA TV (@NBATV) November 22, 2019

This is obviously the best news ever for the Pels, who were forced to deal The Brow and attempt to get the bet possible value for a disgruntled superstar. And I’d say they got a terrific return: Ingram has become a centerpiece as a stretch scorer. Josh Hart has taken a step forward as a shooter off the bench. Lonzo Ball has missed time with a groin injury, and although his shooting continues to be a problem, he’s not the starter, which masks some of his weaknesses and focuses on his strengths like his defense.

Plus, the Pels ended up trading the first-round pick that was De’Andre Hunter to the Hawks and got the eighth overall selection, which they used to take Jaxson Hayes, who will be a rim protector as he develops.

When’s the last time there’s been a pretty even trade like this one?

But really, it’s all about Ingram. Let’s all remember he’s just turned 22 and is in just his fourth season. The hope is he’ll keep this up when Zion Williamson returns, but even if the rookie takes a little chunk out of his workload, Ingram will still be a vital part of the rebuild in the Big Easy.

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The HoopsHype Daily: Giannis Antetokounmpo and Carmelo Anthony had a fun little battle on Thursday night

On a night with just two games scheduled, The Greek Freak stole the show while Melo held his own against one of the NBA’s top teams.

LAST NIGHT IN THE ASSOCIATION: Thursday night featured a fun battle between the old school and the new school.

🦌 Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo posted another crazy stat line, going off for 24 points, 19 rebounds, (a career-high) 15 assists, three steals and one block in a 137-129 Milwaukee victory. In the process, Antetokounmpo became the first Bucks player ever to drop a 20-15-15 stat line, which is ridiculous considering stat-stuffers such as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Oscar Robertson are part of the team’s illustrious history.

We currently have Giannis at No. 1 in our MVP rankings, and if he continues to perform at the level he’s currently at, he won’t be dropping down our list anytime soon.

😮 Opposite Antetokounmpo stood future Hall-of-Famer Carmelo Anthony, who looked much better than he did in his first game for the Blazers. Anthony dropped 18 points, seven rebounds and four assists for Portland, nailing three of his five three-point attempts for the evening. Though the Blazers lost again, falling to 5-11 on the season, if Anthony can give Portland that type of production once Damian Lillard gets healthy (which projects to be Saturday), he might be able to help Portland get off the schneid.

ALL-STAR DOWN: Nikola Vucevic is going to miss at least a month of action due to a right ankle sprain.

FRINGE PLAYER SIGNED: The Jazz signed Juwan Morgan while waiving Stanton Kidd on Thursday.

NO NURK IN 2019: Jusuf Nurkic shot down a report that he could be return from his brutal leg injury soon, tweeting that he won’t be back until 2020.

PAU TO SPAIN? Barcelona really, really want to sign Pau Gasol ahead of his retirement after the 2020 Olympic Games. Could you imagine a starting frontcourt of Pau Gasol and Nikola Mirotic playing in Spain?

SIMMONS TO SUIT UP FOR AUSTRALIA: Ben Simmons says if he’s healthy, he’ll be suiting up for Australia at next summer’s Olympics.

NO MAX OFFER: Zach Lowe reports that the Sixers did not offer Jimmy Butler a five-year max deal last summer, and it might have had to do with tension between the All-Star and the coaching staff.

ACCLIMATING NICELY: Speaking of Butler, The Athletic’s Michael Lee interviewed him recently about how he’s feeling in Miami, how he felt about leaving Philadelphia, and much more.

FIZDALE SAFE: Reportedly, one of the reasons Knicks head coach David Fizdale survived New York’s rough start this season was because the team didn’t feel comfortable promoting any of his assistants. Sorry, Keith Smart.

FEELINGS STILL THERE: Doc Rivers is happy to see his old club, the Celtics, doing well this year.

COURAGEOUS RETURN: Monty Williams on overcoming a terrible tragedy and becoming the Suns’ head coach.

AGING LIKE FINE WINE: These are the oldest players to receive MVP votes in NBA history. (Expect LeBron to join this list in due time.)

LAMELO-CENTRIC POD: Bleacher Report’s Mirin Fader joins Alex Kennedy to discuss the two weeks she spent with LaMelo Ball in Australia, including an interesting tidbit about his deteriorating relationship with his brother Lonzo.

LOVE NOT HATE: Danny Ainge doesn’t want Celtics fans to boo Kyrie Irving during his return next Wednesday.

MAJOR SNEAKER DEAL: Dwyane Wade has announced that Warriors guard D’Angelo Russell will be the new face of Lil-Ning’s Way of Wade sneaker brand.

R.I.P.: Reports came out on Thursday that Wataru “Wat” Misaka, the first Asian/non-white person to play professional basketball, passed away at the age of 95. Misaka appeared in three games for the New York Knicks in the 1947-48 season.

SALARY QUIZ: WHO’S THIS NBA PLAYER? 🤔

Click here for the answer.

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Why we still shouldn’t trust Giannis Antetokounmpo’s 3-point shooting

Giannis isn’t exactly a great three point shooter…yet

To say Giannis Antetokounmpo has never been the NBA’s best shooter is a massive understatement. Once he picks up the ball and chucks it at the basket like a shot put, that’s a win fore the defense.

They’d rather him do that than have him gliding to the rim and casually dunking all over the defense. That strategy has worked against him relatively speaking — he did win the MVP last season, after all.

But that broken jumper is part of the reason why the Raptors were able to turn the tables on the Bucks midway through their playoff series last year. It was a legit weakness. At least until now, it seems.

That said… I still don’t really trust it.

Giannis is a better, but inconsistent, shooter

Defenses should still give Antetokounmpo all the cushion they need to stop him from getting to the rim. That’s where he’s most dangerous at, obviously.

But even on top of that, his 3-point shot isn’t prolific, by any means. He’s shooting 30 percent on 4.9 attempts per game. For a player of his caliber, that’s more than enough to give defenses pause. But a dive a bit deeper into the numbers says this shooting might not last.

Right now, Antetokounmpo’s three point field goals are coming after three to six dribbles according to NBA.com’s stats database. He’s shooting 34.1% on those, which is just a dip below league average. That’s a good number and it gets even better. He hits 37.5 percent of his 3-pointers when he takes just one dribble.

Most of his makes from deep are pull-up shots like this one.

Those dribbles on his makes are used to establish his rhythm and make the shot all one smooth-ish motion. It’s still not a great jumper, but it’s good enough.

When he grabs the ball off the catch, he’s still lining the shot up and getting his feet right. When he catches the ball, it’s like he’s still loading up.

His shot has made some progress, but it’s still inconsistent enough that you’ll live with it as a result if you’re the defense. He only shoots 30 percent for a reason.

Defenses should still give him this shot

Here’s where the concern comes in: He’s only hitting 15.4 percent of his spot-up attempts and is only taking 0.9 threes per game without a single dribble. That’s typically the easiest three you can take — especially from the corner. Yet he doesn’t take them and, when he does, he doesn’t hit them.

There’s a theme here. Antetokounmpo isn’t a great stand-still shooter. He’s shot under 30 percent from 3-point range after not taking a single dribble in five of the seven years of his career. The only two he was above 30 percent were his rookie year when he shot 32 percent and the 2017-18 season when he shot 34.5 percent.

He’s got the ball in his hands for most of the game, so he’s largely able to pick and choose what shots from deep he’s going to take. But pull-up 3’s are hard, even when no one is guarding you.

The Bucks, as a team, are shooting 37.9 percent off of one dribble but 30 percent from deep off of three to six dribbles. The more they dribble, the worse the shot quality gets.

Giannis is becoming a threat from deep, but he’s not a great one. So while he’s shooting a bit more, it’s not quite a wrap for the rest of the NBA just yet. If he keeps progressing like this, though? Good luck.

A behind-the-scenes look LaMelo Ball’s crazy life with Mirin Fader

Mirin Fader spent two weeks with LaMelo Ball in Australia and wrote a piece about his life. She discusses all things LaMelo on this podcast.

On this episode of The HoopsHype Podcast, Alex Kennedy is joined by Mirin Fader of Bleacher Report. She recently wrote a fantastic, in-depth piece about LaMelo Ball’s life. Alex and Mirin discuss how LaMelo has dealt with fame, his experience overseas, how he feels like people see him as “a dollar sign” rather than a person, his relationships with LaVar Ball and Lonzo Ball and more. Time-stamps are below!

1:00: Mirin spent three weeks in Lithuania with LaMelo and the Ball family last year, and then spent two weeks with them in Australia for this new piece. She talks about how this latest article came together.

2:05: Mirin talks about how she picks who she’s going to profile and what that process is like from reporting to writing.

5:00: Having spent time around LaMelo in Lithuania and Australia, how has his life changed over the last year? Mirin was curious to find out.

6:40: LaMelo started signing autographs at 5 years old and he says he can’t remember a time when he wasn’t in the spotlight. Alex and Mirin talk about how he was essentially a child star and how he has handled that kind of crazy existence.

8:40: LaVar Ball pushed all three of his sons to be professional basketball players. In Mirin’s piece, LaMelo said, “All my life, I felt like I was just supposed to go to the NBA.” He also talked about how his father pushed him away from any other career path. Does LaMelo love the game and will he be happy in the NBA, or is he just doing this to please others?

11:10: At one point, LaMelo said something very sad to Mirin: “People don’t look at you as a human. People look at you as a dollar sign.” And his manager, former NBA player Jermaine Jackson, told her, “People done made money off this kid for years… It’s damn near like he’s a prostitute.” Does this affect his relationships and ability to trust other people?

14:15: Mirin talks about the sacrifices LaMelo has made and how he’s been forced to grow up quicker than his peers.

16:15: LaMelo told Mirin that he always wanted to finish high school and spend one year at USC, but his father forced him to go to Lithuania. LaVar hasn’t been as visible recently, which seems intentional. Is he still as involved when it comes to LaMelo’s career?

19:50: Mirin talks about how LaMelo’s relationship with Lonzo seems to have changed, to the point that LaMelo said he doesn’t really get advice from Lonzo these days.

21:40: Lonzo seems fed up with Big Baller Brand. Does LaMelo have similar concerns and does anyone know the status of BBB right now?

23:55: What is LiAngelo Ball up to these days? What does the future hold for him?

26:35: Mirin wrote that LaMelo doesn’t want to do the “Ball in the Family” reality show and drags when he’s asked to film scenes. How is he handling that distraction and having so much of his life play out on a reality show?

29:00: Alex and Mirin talk about how different LaVar is from his sons.

33:14: Mirin talks about the competition in the NBL and whether LaMelo is being challenged and truly helping his development.

35:55: Will more players take the NBL route in the future, especially if LaMelo and RJ Hampton get drafted high in the 2020 NBA Draft?

This episode is sponsored by Menlo Club! Click here to give it a try and get $35 off your first monthly or seasonal package by using our promo code: HOOPS

If you’re interested in advertising on The HoopsHype Podcast, email hoopshype@hoopshype.com for more information.

Trail Blazers-Bucks odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Thursday’s Portland Trail Blazers at Milwaukee Bucks betting odds and lines, with NBA matchup analysis, picks and tips.

The Portland Trail Blazers (5-10) visit the Milwaukee Bucks (11-3) Thursday at Fiserv Forum. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET. We analyze the Trail Blazers-Bucks odds and lines, with NBA betting advice and tips around the matchup.

Place a legal sports bet on this NBA action or other games at BetMGM.

Trail Blazers at Bucks: Key injuries

Trail Blazers

PG Damian Lillard (back) out
C Hassan Whiteside (hip) questionable
C Zach Collins (shoulder) out
C Jusuf Nurkic (leg) out
SG Anfernee Simmons (ankle) questionable

Milwaukee

SF Khris Middleton (thigh) out