Nuggets vs. Clippers Prediction [NBA Playoff Serie]

My Nuggets vs. Clippers Prediction Game 7

Jokic,  Murray, and The Nuggets won game 6 111-98 and force the  LA Clippers into a final game. 

Let’s jump into my game 7 prediction! 

As I said, Jokic and Murray were two key players during games 5 & 6. They maintained offensive pressure on the Clippers. That’s the reason why they came back from 1-3 in this series. 

In both games, they did reverse the situation during the second half.

On the Clippers’ side, their ability to defend aggressively will be the key. I think that Leonard, George, and Beverly will perform better in this area. 

If they prevent Jokic from being the game 7 MVP, LAC will qualify. 

I believe in this scenario, I bet Clippers Money Line -323 on Stake.com

Nuggets Money Line Odds on US-Sportsbook:

– Betonline.ag  -310

– Bookmaker.eu: -325

(September 11)

My Nuggets vs. Clippers Prediction Game 5

Game 4 prediction was wrong since LAC won 95-85. LA Clippers has settled this result.

Tonight, Nuggets will fight to stay alive in this playoff series.

For the Nuggets, I expect Jamal Murray to be the key. He needs to score more to give his team a chance to win. Jokic can’t bring game 5 on his own.

For the clippers, Leonard has been the MVP in this series. Defensively, his effort limited Nuggets’ offensiveness. And with 30-points in Game 4, he led LAC to 3-1 in this series.

I expect  Leonard and Paul Georges to  keep great  attention to defensive details. For this reason, I bet Clippers Money Line -370 on Cloudbet.com

Nuggets Money Line Odds on US-Sportsbook:

– Betonline.ag  -370

– Bovada: -400

 (Wednesday, September 9)

My Nuggets vs. Clippers Prediction Game 4

Game 3 prediction was right since LAC won 113-107.

That being said, I was surprised to see Jokic perform so well. He led the Nuggets, but Leonard and Beverley sealed the deal defensively.

As a result, Jamal Murray (5 of 17) and Jerami Grant (5 of 14) did not score enough.

In my opinion, Murray’s ability to perform better is the key to Game 4. Nuggets need him, and he has been impressive against the Jazz when Denver needed him the more.

For this reason, and great odds on Stake.com x4 (Money Line +300), I bet for the nuggets to Win!

Nuggets Money Line Odds on US-Sportsbook:

– Betonline  +280

– Bookmaker: +292

(Monday, September 7)

The nuggets vs. Clippers Prediction on Game 2 went wrong due to a great game of Jokic and The Nuggets.

But what a game! To be honest, I hope we’ll see such a game tonight.

Of course, the key to Game 3 will be Jokic’s wrist health. Indeed, he has been reported questionable for this game.

Is he going to play?

And if he does, will shooting efficiency take a dip?

I can’t answer this question.

That being said, I see almost the same odds on this game than on the two previous games. It sounds like this injury might be underestimated by the bookies.

For this reason, I bet on the Nuggets, Money Line, +356 on Cloudbet.

US sportsbook, Betonline Nuggets Money Line +350.

(Saturday, September 5)

The nuggets vs. Clippers Prediction on Game 1 was right as we did see tough LA Clippers win 120-97.

Here, I’ll present briefly my thoughts on Game2.

On the Denver Nuggets Side, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, or Patrick Beverley will defend on Jamal Murray. So, Jokic has a key role. His first quarter on game 1 was promising, but he will need to be more consistent. Nuggets are already in a tough spot, it’s an extra motivation.

The Clippers, as Paul George said, their attention to detail was great during game 1. I expect him and Leonard to keep the pressure on the Nuggets.

LA Clippers’ first game was impressive. Even if I expect that the Nuggets will comes closer this time, I bet for the Clippers.

Nuggets vs Clippers prediction

Thursday, September 3 

I believe that this series has the chance to go to seven like the majority of series that involve the Nuggets.

Both of these teams are on win streaks heading into Game 1 and it will be interesting to see which team comes out and makes a statement in that game.

The Nuggets are going to have to play at the same level of urgency that they have been playing in order to play inspired and hungry. We have seen what they are capable of doing when they play like that and they definitely have the firepower to keep that train moving.

I see Murray slowing down a small bit but not playing poorly by any means, basically meaning that he may average 25-30 points per game but without any 50 points explosions like the last series.

One thing that will severely hurt this Nuggets team though is their size compared to the Clippers. They are not that great of a team defensively and won’t be able to put Murray on Leonard or Jokic on George.

They will need to put guys like Torrey Craig and Michael Porter on Leonard and George but as I have said earlier, Porter is horrific defensively and it could get his team lit up. And, they need to figure out a way to match their size and still be able to score consistently on the other end.

For the Clippers, they have all the talent in the world at their disposal and remain as one of the deepest teams in the entire league.

But just like every team in the league, they have their weaknesses. Their most recent series made light of that, with George and his inconsistent play throughout all six games.

You just never know what version of Paul George you are going to get from game to game, he has the talent and capabilities to score 30 a night but then has games where he can’t put up 15. He will be the x-factor in the series and could determine if these series go seven games or if they wrap things up fast.

Prediction: Clippers in six (6) games

As I stated before, their depth is really what kills teams because of their ability to run a 10 plus man rotation and all of those guys are able to contribute with scoring, defense, rebounding, etc.

The Nuggets are going to have to get good production out of every player that they put out on the floor, they can’t afford to get lazy and start chucking shots.

All in all, I think the Clippers will be able to win this series in about six games if all players are able to stay healthy.

The series will end in six (6) games x4.01 on Cloudbet.

On US Sportsbooks:

• Betonline +300
• Bookmaker +307

As for my Game 1 Nuggets vs Clippers prediction, I am taking the Clippers due to Kawhi Leonard and his postseason dominance and because they are the better defensive team and could provide for some difficult matchups for the Nuggets.

Another reason for my pick is the Nuggets’ previous series, for as talented at that team is they found themselves down 3-1 at one point. After their Game 1 win, it seemed as though they were unmotivated and were lacking effort defensively against a Jazz team that they should have beaten in maybe five or six games.

I think they will rely upon their scoring as they did against the Jazz and will eventually get burned for it due to the Clippers having more talent both offensively and defensively and it will end up costing the Nuggets.

LA Clippers to Win x1.20 on Cloudbet.

When it comes to US Sportsbooks: 

• Betonline Clippers Money Line -500
• Bookmaker Clippers Money Line -540

Teams

Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets are coming off of a 4-3 victory against the Utah Jazz.

They had initially won the first game in that series but ended up losing three straight games to the Donovan Mitchell led squad. But Nuggets guard Jamal Murray and big man Nikola Jokic put the team on their back. Rattling off three straight victories against the Jazz and becoming one of the few teams to ever win a series after trailing 3-1.

Murray had finished the series averaging an incredible 31.6 points per game and had multiple 50 points outings throughout the series.

Jokic put up some good numbers himself but not nearly as outstanding as his counterpart in Murray.

This team had also gotten Gary Harris back for the last two games of the series and could make this team even deadlier if he is able to rekindle his offensive rhythm. He was only able to score eight points in the two games that he was active and had a shooting percentage that was lower than 20 percent.

His performance could take this team to another level, especially if Michael Porter Jr is able to keep up his incredible play on the offensive end.

They still aren’t fully healthy however, as Will Barton has missed every game since the NBA has resumed action in the bubble. He is a very important piece for the Nuggets and has even started a few games for the Nuggets this season when he’s been healthy.

They will need him back for this series if they look to increase their three-game winning streak to four after Game 1.

LA Clippers

On the other side of this matchup, we have the Los Angeles Clippers.

The Clippers were able to win their series against the Dallas Mavericks despite the heroics of Luka Doncic, the series had been tied at 2-2 before the Clippers were able to win the next two games and finish the series 4-2.

Many believe that the Clippers had gotten lucky in this series because Mavericks big man Kristaps Porzingis was ruled out for the last three games in the series and Luka had rolled his ankle during one of their games.

However, injuries happen often in the NBA unfortunately and the Clippers took full advantage and are now on a two-game win streak heading into Game 1 against the Nuggets. Due to those injuries, they had thrown off many series predictions and bets that were made for the Mavericks and if a similar event happens in this series then it could throw off many Nuggets vs. Clippers predictions.

They were able to score over 150 points against the Mavericks in Game 5 and scored 111 in Game 6, they are starting to find an offensive groove and that could be really scary for a Nuggets team that was unable to defend against Donovan Mitchell and the Jazz.

Key Players

As in any series, this matchup will have a few key players for both teams heading into Game 1.

For the Nuggets, they will need Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic to play efficient but aggressive basketball.

Jokic especially, many times he would be more of a pass-first type of player and that’s great, but he needs to realize when it is time to step up and be the main offensive weapon when his team needs it the most. He is the main star player on that team and too often he would end a game with only about 10 points in a loss.

If he is able to play fast and aggressive while keeping his turnovers low and efficiency high, then this team could be even more of a juggernaut on the offensive end.

For Murray, if he is able to continue his incredible hot streak then the one-two punch of Murray and Jokic will be unstoppable.

On the Clippers side, their key players would be Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

Leonard has been cementing his reputation of stepping up his game to new levels in the postseason, even more, this year, posting 32 points per game to go along with 10 rebounds per game. He also averaged 2.3 steals in the series as well, proving that he is an elite all-around player.

The Clippers are going to need his elite defense as well as his offense in order to give themselves the chance to win in this matchup.

Unlike Leonard, his teammate Paul George is not nearly as consistent or dangerous in the postseason. George is titled as an elite two-way player similar to Leonard, in the postseason.

However, his offense seems to have fallen off a cliff. He averaged only 18 points per game on horrible efficiency in all but one game, for a star player on a title-contending team his numbers have to improve and fast. He did show flashes during the Mavericks series in one game, posting 35 points on excellent shooting from the field.

The team was able to score 150 plus points that game and prove how scary this team can really be when he is firing on all cylinders.

Each of these players has the capability to completely change the landscape of the series at any time with both their offense or defense and are important things to watch when trying to make a Nuggets vs. Clippers prediction.

Factors to consider for Nuggets vs. Clippers predictions 

Before this series officially kicks off, there are some factors to help each team win this series.

For the Clippers, they will need their forward Marcus Morris to not hurt this team.

He got into a few small fights with the Mavericks in the last series and had picked up multiple technical fouls throughout the series, he will need to contain his frustration and not give the other team very easy points.

The Clippers will also have to find a solution to the Nuggets’ extremely successful pick and roll between Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray.

I believe that they will be placing Leonard on Murray and use his lateral quickness and great defensive instincts to stop their rhythm while running that play.

Lastly for the Clippers, they will need a few members of their bench crew to step up and deliver in big-time moments if Leonard and George happen to get taken out of a play or when they are out of the game entirely.

Guys like Lou Williams and Reggie Jackson will need to provide scoring and good ball control as well. If they are able to provide that then it will mean George and Leonard may be able to get rest throughout the game and come into the fourth quarter rested and ready to close it.

Taking all of those factors into account may change your final Nuggets vs. Clippers prediction.

For the Nuggets, they will need to do everything in their power to slow Leonard down and make him uncomfortable throughout the game.

They cannot afford him to get comfortable and start hitting shot after shot because I don’t think they are able to keep up with the Clippers going shot for shot.

They will also need to hope that Paul George isn’t efficient in a few games and if he has a bad night then the Nuggets will have to take advantage of that. Failing to do so will dramatically change the outcome of the series and throw off all of the Nuggets vs. Clippers predictions from around the world.

Lastly, they are going to have to communicate more on the defensive end as a team as well as improve their own individual defense.

The Jazz is not that explosive of an offense outside of Donovan Mitchell and yet they were able to do basically anything that they wanted against this Denver defense, specifically against Michael Porter Jr. in the pick and roll.

As good as an offensive player that Porter is, he was essentially a turnstile for the other team, and they were able to get any shot they wanted against him. The Nuggets are going to need his offense throughout the game at some point and if he isn’t able to play any defense then he will not be playable down the stretch of a close game.

One final key for both sides would be to limit their fouling on jump shooters, especially down the stretch of a close game. We have seen it far too many times so far in the bubble of players jumping in order to close out on a three-point shooter and fouling him.

It turns 35% shooters from the three-point line into 95% shooters from the free-throw line.

Both teams will need to close out without fouling to avoid giving them free points and to avoid getting unnecessary fouls that could pull players from the game early.