The LA Clippers finally got a good shooting night from Paul George, and they blew out the Utah Jazz 132-106 in Game 3. How will Utah respond?
Catch this game live on Tuesday, June 15, at 10:00 AM Manila time.
HOME TEAM: LA Clippers (1-2, 1-0 at home)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Reggie Jackson
- SG: Paul George
- SF: Kawhi Leonard
- PF: Nicolas Batum
- C: Marcus Morris Sr.
Clippers fans wanted a signature performance from Paul George in Game 3, and they got exactly that. He shot 12 of 24 and 6 of 10 from the free throw line to finish with 31 points, 3 rebounds, 5 assists and a steal. That kind of line for the oft-struggling PG is important because when he’s making shots, the Jazz have to stretch out their defense a lot more.
Kawhi Leonard also had a good game. He went 14 of 24 from the field (1 of 6 from deep) and ended the game with 34 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals and a block. When he and George are doing things like combining for 65 points, things are much easier for the rest of the team.
Credit also has to go to Nicolas Batum and Reggie Jackson, who both chipped in 17 points in the big win. Jackson, in particular, has been lights-out from deep, and has hit 63.2% of his threes against Utah. He’s brimming with confidence thanks to his 18.3 PPG average in the series and his floor spacing is a huge problem for Utah to deal with.
We can expect more of the same from the Clippers in Game 4, and it will all boil down to whether or not Paul George can keep up with his production.
The Clippers are 26-24-1 ATS after a win and 20-17 ATS as the home favorite.
ROAD TEAM: Utah Jazz (2-1, 0-1 on the road)
Projected Starting Five:
- PG: Donovan Mitchell (Mike Conley questionable)
- SG: Joe Ingles
- SF: Bojan Bogdanovic
- PF: Royce O’Neale
- C: Rudy Gobert
Utah got another good game from Donovan Mitchell, who had 30 points on 11 of 24 shooting and 5 of 9 from the field. Unfortunately for him, none of his other teammates were able to break the 20-point mark.
Bojan Bogdanovic, who had 21 points in Game 2, struggled with his shot in the third game and finished 2 of 10 from the field, and 1 of 5 from three for a total of 9 points. Jordan Clarkson had 14 points but also had a bad shooting night with 5 of 16 from the field. He was pretty good from deep, though, and finished 4 of 9.
The biggest thing that Utah will need to address is their defense, because now they’ll have Paul George’s hot night fresh in their memories. There were actually plenty of moments in the first two games where George was left wide open for shots and simply clanked them. They can’t do the same thing this time around, especially if they want to build that 3-1 series lead.
The Clippers are a talented team, and the Jazz just got reminded of that. Expect them to make appropriate adjustments in Game 4.
The Jazz are 27-14 ATS after a loss, but are 1-4 as a road underdog.
PREDICTIONS:
Spread: The Clippers will be riding high off a big win, and should continue to play well in front of their fans to cover the -5.
Over/Under: It was a one-sided affair, but the over still hit last game. I think it’s more competitive in Game 4 and the over 223.5 will hit.
