Dallas Mavericks at Los Angeles Clippers

Los Angeles Clippers -3.5

Over/Under 220.5

 

DeAndre Jordan returns to L.A. for the first time to face his former team, and the sky is the limit for what he can do in this game. In his first game against the Clippers Jordan had a season-high 23 rebounds to go with 16 points.

Jordan missed the morning shootaround due to an illness and is questionable to play. Maxi Kleber and Salah Mejri are also questionable. If all three are out, Dwight Powell and Drik Nowitzki would likely get the center minutes for Dallas.

Whoever is healthy enough to play center should have a nice matchup. The Clippers are allowing the sixth most points, the third most blocks and the 10th most rebounds in the NBA.

If two or more of Dallas’s centers are out, that could bode well for Montrezl Harrell.

Harrell is almost always at a height disadvantage, but that would be mitigated a bit against Dwight Powell and Dirk Nowitzki, as the latter can’t really jump at this point in his career.

While the Mavericks have gotten solid minutes from their backup centers this season, they would likely miss DeAndre Jordan if he cannot go. Jordan is sixth in the NBA in field goal percentage at 62.1 percent.

These two teams are separated by just 1.5 games in the standings, but both have very heavy home/road splits. Dallas has managed just two road wins all season, while the Clippers are 9-4 at home.

The Clippers have lost four consecutive games, and it probably isn’t a coincidence Lou Williams has missed all four of those games. Williams is questionable with a hamstring injury.

Tobias Harris is coming off his best game of the season, in which he scored a season-high 39 points and collected his ninth double-double against Portland. Harris struggled in his first game against Dallas, going 5-of-18 from the field.

Dennis Smith Jr. is out again for the Mavericks, but J.J. Barea is probable. Barea returned to play 21 minutes Tuesday after missing two games with an ankle injury.

DeAndre Jordan wasn’t the only Mav to have a huge game against the Clippers. Harrison Barnes had 30 points on 11-28 shooting and added nine rebounds in 38 minutes.

One solution to the Clippers’ recent woes may be to shoot more threes. The Clippers rank 28th in the NBA in three-point attempts, but they are fourth in three-point percentage and ninth in overall field goal percentage.

Another reason for L.A.’s struggles with Lou Williams out may be the lack of ball movement. The Clippers rank 26th in assist rate this season, and 20th in assist-to-turnover ratio.

Dallas’s Achilles heel, as you might expect from a team with two young ball handlers, is turnover rate. Only three teams turn the ball over more often than the Mavericks this season.