In the nightcap of Tuesday's NBA Playoffs tripleheader (10:00 p.m. ET, TNT), the fourth-seeded Suns (-8.5) look to even up their best-of-seven against the fifth-seeded Clippers after falling 115-110 in Game 1. While the Suns suffered their first loss with Kevin Durant on the court, they still sit as two-dollar series favorites to advance to the Western Conference semifinals.
In Game 1, Phoenix trailed by as many as 16 points in the first half, but a late second-quarter surge cut the deficit to just five at the break (59-54). In the third, the Suns capped off a 15-0 run to take a nine-point lead (77-68) and seemingly had all the momentum. However, the Suns' second unit couldn't preserve the multi-possession lead in the latter stages of the third quarter, as the game was knotted at 81 apiece entering the fourth.
Despite surrendering a double-digit lead on the road, Tyronn Lue's bunch proceeded to outscore the Suns 34-29 in the final 12 minutes, winning the battle of the boards while go-to scoring option Kawhi Leonard (38 points, 13-of-24 FG) canned two clutch threes in crunch time. Although he couldn't get much of anything going from the field (three-of-19 FG), Russell Westbrook came up huge as a rebounder (11 rebounds), facilitator (eight assists), and defender (two steals, three blocks), helping seal the win for the Clips.
Phoenix superstars Devin Booker (26 points, 10-of-19 FG) and Durant (27 points, seven-of-15 FG) had efficient enough games to lead their team to victory, but fellow superstar Chris Paul (seven points, two-of-eight FG) couldn't get his signature mid-range pull-up to fall when it mattered most.
Will the Suns make amends for Sunday's gut-wrenching loss, or will the Paul George-less Clippers head to L.A. with a 2-0 series lead? Below, we'll break down Tuesday night's Suns-Clippers matchup, giving our prediction and best bets for the 2023 NBA Playoffs.
MORE ODDS: Spreads, moneylines, props, parlays -- get it all with BetMGM!
Suns vs. Clippers odds, picks, predictions
- Spread: Suns -8.5 (-110); Clippers +8.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: OVER 226.5 (-110); UNDER 226.5 (-110)
- Moneyline: Suns -375; Clippers +290
Even though they lost outright as eight-point favorites on Sunday night, the betting market's still high on Phoenix to bounce back on Tuesday. The Suns are again priced as multi-possession favorites, and their -375 moneyline price gives them a 78.95-percent implied win probability to head to L.A. with the series knotted up 1-1.
Phoenix needs to show more on the defensive glass after allowing 15 offensive rebounds in Game 1, and although their starting five isn't the best rebounding lineup sans Deandre Ayton (27.5-percent defensive rebouding percentage), we don't think the L.A. will end tonight's game +11 in the offensive rebound category.
The Suns can live with Leonard scoring 30-plus tonight, given he'll likely attempt north of 20 shots, but they can't live with Mason Plumlee, Norman Powell, and Terance Mann shooting a combined 11-of-19 off the bench as they did in Game 1. If the Suns' second unit can hold their own, Phoenix likely walks away with a multi-possession win, covering the 8.5-point spread. If not, we could see another tightly contested game down the stretch, and although the Suns will likely pull out a narrow victory, it might not be by more than eight points.
This spread is a fair indication of the potential outcome tonight, therefore we don't have a strong feeling about either side, but if we had to pick, we'd lean toward Phoenix shoring up on the defensive glass while Paul puts together a more efficient night as a scorer alongside Booker and Durant.
Prediction: Suns 117, Clippers 107. The Suns (-8.5) cover the spread, with the game going UNDER the total (226.5).
Best player prop bet for Suns vs. Clippers: Chris Paul OVER 13.5 points (-120)
We think CP3 puts together a better shooting output after going just two-of-eight from the field in Game 1, finishing Tuesday's contest with 14-plus points. Out of all five Suns starters, Paul took the fewest shot attempts, and although he's one of the game's best facilitators, he's too gifted of a scorer to remain that passive on offense. Booker and Durant are still going to get theirs, but there are enough shots to go around for Paul to end the night with 14-plus points. He averaged 10.9 field goal attempts in eight regular-season games with Durant, and another double-digit shot attempt night coupled with a few three-throws mixed in should get us there.
