Los Angeles Clippers vs. New York Knicks: Pro Basketball Betting Odds and Picks

Los Angeles Clippers vs. New York Knicks
Friday, 1/17/14, 7:00 PM EST
Opening Point Spread: Los Angeles -3.5
Current Betting Line: Los Angeles -3.5
Opening Total: 201.5
Current Total: 202.5
Odds Courtesy of Bookmaker

The New York Knicks have played poorly at Madison Square Garden this season

Los Angeles has won four games in a row, including a 129-127 victory over the Dallas Mavericks as 4.5-point home favorites Wednesday, while going OVER the betting total of 209. The Clippers are now 14-10 SU when playing without starting point guard Chris Paul, which is important to consider when making your pro basketball picks. The team is off to its second best start in franchise history in putting together a 27-13 record through the first 40 games of the 2013-14 campaign. Los Angeles is 13-4 SUATS as road favorites of 3.5 to 6 points the last two-plus seasons, with the OVER going 9-8 in that situation.

The Clippers are hoping that shooting guard J.J. Redick can build off his last performance, as he scored a career-high 33 points against the Mavericks last time out. Los Angeles hasn’t missed Paul due to the play of backup point guard Darren Collison, who is averaging 16.6 points with a 3.6-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio over his last five contests. It’s important to point out that the franchise is 9-10 SU on the road, including a 3-5 mark versus Eastern Conference opponents, which can’t be ignored when looking over the pro basketball odds page.

New York returns home after dropping a pair of road games, including a 117-89 defeat to the Indiana Pacers as 9.5-point underdogs Thursday, while going OVER the betting total in each of those affairs. The Knicks are a dismal 7-12 SU when playing at Madison Square Garden, including a 1-6 mark when taking on Western Conference foes. The franchise came away with a 93-80 victory over Los Angeles in the first meeting on Nov. 27. New York is 7-6 SU and 5-8 ATS at home with a betting total of 200 to 204.5, with the UNDER going 9-4 in those 13 opportunities.

The Knicks are led on the offensive end by forward Carmelo Anthony, who entered last night’s affair averaging 26.0 points and 8.8 rebounds per game. He scored 27 points in 41 minutes of action in his first game against the Clippers. New York is capable of covering this number due to the underdog going 10-3 ATS in the last 13 meetings in this series.