NBA Playoffs Odds, Picks & Predictions: Saturday (Clippers vs. Nuggets)
The National Basketball Association (NBA) has a Game 7 on tap in the Western Conference between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Denver Nuggets on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET. That game can be viewed or streamed on TNT/truTV/Max.
Let’s keep trying to build that bankroll for the stretch run with our top NBA picks for Saturday, May 3rd.
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Saturday’s Best NBA Playoffs Picks
NBA odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook | All picks are for 1 unit
Los Angeles Clippers (+108) at Denver Nuggets (-126) | O/U 206.5 (-110/-110)
The Clippers and Nuggets meet for a winner-take-all Game 7 at Ball Arena. If you’re a Denver sports fan, it’s a tough day with the Nuggets playing in Game 7 at home and the hometown Colorado Avalanche playing in a Game 7 on the road against the Dallas Stars.
In Game 6, the Clippers picked up a 111-105 victory at the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, pushing as a 6-point favorite at most shops as the over (212.5) came through. This has been a strange series, as we have had four games decided by six or fewer points, while the two others were decided by 16+ points. It’s probably a good bet that Game 7 will be relatively close, too.
Oddly enough, we had the under cash in the first four games, while the books adjusted the totals down, and the production went up. In Games 5 and 6, we had a combined average total of 231 points per game, easily cashing the over in each contest.
The Nuggets shot 52.4% (44-of-84) from the field in Game 6, while Nikola Jokic posted 25 points with eight assists, seven rebounds, three steals and a blocked shot in 42 minutes, hitting 11-of-22 from the field. Jamal Murray followed up his giant Game 5 performance in Denver with 21 points, eight boards and eight dimes, while swatting three shots in his 44 minutes. Jokic, Murray and Christian Braun each had two three-pointers as starters, while veteran Russell Westbrook chipped in with a pair of triples and 14 points off the bench.
The Nuggets were +3 in the rebounding department, too. The difference was +2 for the Clippers in the blocked shots department, while L.A. turned it over just seven times. Denver committed 12 miscues, and Denver managed to get to the free-throw line just nine times, going 6-of-9. Los Angeles was 86.7% (13-of-15) from the free-throw stripe, while going 30.8% (12-of-39) from behind the three-point line.
Michael Porter Jr. has continued to soldier through this series even though he is nursing a sore left shoulder. He is good for 10.2 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, while averaging just shy of 33 minutes per outing.
For the Clippers, James Harden managed 28 points on 10-of-20 shooting, while adding eight assists with six boards. Kawhi Leonard continued his strong play with 27 points, 10 rebounds and five assists on 11-of-22 from the field, while knocking down a pair of three-pointers. Ivica Zubac was good for 10 points and six rebounds on 5-of-6 from the field in 33 minutes, while adding three blocked shots. Veteran swingman Nic Batum was good for six points with six assists, five rebounds, three blocks and two steals in his 34 minutes off the bench.
Los Angeles is looking to advance to the second round after being shown the door in the first round in each of the past two seasons. I think Denver has that championship experience. They will dig deep and tap into that championship mettle to get the job done, especially at home.
Let’s also go with another over, even in a Game 7, when nerves can sometimes be an issue, especially early on. The past two games have ended up going over after a 4-0 run to the under early in the series.
Picks: Nuggets -1.5 (-114) & Over 206.5 Points (-108)
Make sure to check out our other best bets for Saturday: