LA Clippers vs LA Lakers Prediction: Big-time game, a battle to decide fate(potentially)

The NBA Play-in and Playoffs tournaments are near and the Regular Season is going to be curtains soon. This has been a strong Season and we are going to see another exciting playoff battlefield where giants will be felled. Anyway, in this game, the LA Clippers are going to take on the LA Lakers in a game where a win for either team can determine a lot.

The Clippers enter the game after losing 114:122 against the Pelicans despite a 40 points and eight rebounds outburst by Kawhi Leonard. The Clippers have lost two in a row and five of their last nine games, a window that has been commonplace this season. The Clippers have 41 wins and 38 losses and their recent lean window has put them in a tricky scenario where they can fall into the Play-in tournament. The danger of falling into the Play-in scenario means that the Clippers will need to tighten things up. Not having Paul George has hurt them because if he was here, then they would have been in the top-six position.

The Lakers come into this game after sneaking out a 135:133 win against the Jazz, thanks to a 37 points outburst by LeBron James. The Lakers have won four in a row and seven of their last eight games. This strong window has given them a big chance to scoop up a top-six spot in the West. This has been propelled by the play of Anthony Davis who has been getting big numbers day in and day out. The return of LeBron deepens the frontline which helps them overcome an otherwise flailing backcourt. The Lakers have two tough games in a row but their confidence has been inspiring. 

• Clippers: OUT: Paul George. QUESTIONABLE: Eric Gordon, Marcus Morris Jr;
• Lakers: Game-Time Decisions: LeBron James, Scotty Pippen Jr, D’Angelo Russell.

The Lakers have been playing some tremendous basketball lately and the duo of Davis and LeBron has taken the next step to propel something special. The Clippers have been playing some inconsistent basketball and without George, Leonard has been burdened with too much. Anyway, the Lakers are playing a back-to-back whereas the Clippers had a lengthy three-day break which will be huge. I believe this will play a huge role but the Lakers will force a close game. I predict a scoreline of 126:122 in favor of the Clippers.