NBA Best Bets and Bold Predictions: Clippers vs. Thunder

Two of the top teams in the West face off Thursday evening in Oklahoma City.

After a week off for the NBA All-Star break, more than half of the league is back in action Thursday night and two of the top teams in the West are set to meet for the third and final time in the regular season. The Oklahoma City Thunder welcome the Los Angeles Clippers to Paycom Center for the second time this year with the season series tied 1–1.

The Clippers (36–17) won 128–117 a month ago in L.A. behind Paul George’s 38-point performance. And back in December, the Thunder (37–17) came out on top 134–115 in OKC thanks to a game-high 31 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Thursday’s result could end up being the tiebreaker down the stretch with these two teams so close in the standings — the Clippers can pass the Thunder for the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference with a win.

Los Angeles and Oklahoma City both have clean injury reports and the Thunder are 1.5-point favorites at home, marking just the 10th time this year the Clippers have been installed as an underdog.

Los Angeles Clippers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder

Spread: Clippers +1.5 (-118) | Thunder -1.5 (-118)
Moneyline: LAC (-105) | OKC (-118)
Total: 235.5 — Over (-110) | Under (-118)
Game Info: Thursday, Feb. 22 | 8 p.m. ET

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is second in the NBA in scoring :: Alonzo Adams/USA TODAY Sports

Best Bet: Thunder -1.5 (-118)

Bold Prediction: Jalen Williams Scores 25+ Points

L.A. has the second-best record in the NBA in 2024 (17–5) behind only the Cleveland Cavaliers (18–3), and during that dominant stretch, coach Tyronn Lue’s team has gone 10–3 on the road. The Clippers have won their last five away games, including a 130–125 victory against the Golden State Warriors last Wednesday without Kawhi Leonard (leg) in their last game before the break.

With Leonard on the bench, James Harden led the team with 26 points and seven dimes and Norman Powell chipped in 21 off the bench. The win over the Warriors was a big bounce back from last Monday’s 121–100 home loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves, L.A.’s most lopsided loss in over a month. The Clippers lead the league in three-point percentage (39.5) and have three players shooting better than 40% from deep: Leonard, Powell and Harden.

The T-Wolves limited Los Angeles to 9–28 shooting from beyond the arc in the upset win; opponents shoot a respectable 36.4% from three against Oklahoma City despite its No. 4 defensive rating.

The Thunder enter Thursday’s matchup having won two in a row overall and four straight at home. Ironically, their last loss at Paycom Center was also against Minnesota a few weeks ago. OKC scored back-to-back 127–113 victories over the Orlando Magic and Sacramento Kings heading into the break following a 145–111 blowout loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

Jalen Williams is enjoying his best month of the season so far, averaging 25 points per game on 59/47/87 shooting splits. He even outscored Gilgeous-Alexander, the No. 2 scorer in the NBA, in the Magic game with 33 points.

The extended break should benefit the Clippers, one of the oldest teams in the league, but their 3–6 record against the spread as an underdog is concerning, especially given the Thunder’s 23–15 mark as a favorite, which includes that 19-point win against L.A. in December. The Clippers have been hot, but Oklahoma City will come out of the break with a win at home.

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