The Celtics-Clippers Trend You Need To Know

One side of the total has been dominant when LA's been an underdog this season

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Clippers (37-17) at Celtics (37-16)

Thursday 2/13/20, 8:05pm EST

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TREND: The UNDER has gone 8-2 when the Clippers have played as an underdog this season.

STORYLINE: “Jayson Tatum seems destined for superstardom in the NBA, but one advanced metric already has the Boston Celtics forward ranked close behind some of the league’s best. Just 49 games into his third season of professional basketball, Tatum’s Real Plus-Minus (RPM) of 5.37 has him ranked fifth in the NBA behind very good company. Only the Los Angeles Lakers’ LeBron James (10.29), the Milwaukee Bucks’ Giannis Antetokounmpo (7.61), the Los Angeles Clippers’ Kawhi Leonard (7.02) and the Houston Rockets’ James Harden (6.55) were in front of Tatum entering Wednesday. This statistic measures a player’s average impact, using his net point differential for every 100 offensive and defensive possessions while he’s on the court. Tatum, who was just named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week for games played between Feb. 3 and Feb. 9, has emerged as one of the best players on the Celtics this season. Leading the team with an average of 22.1 points per game, Tatum has aided Boston to a third-place standing in the East, trailing only the Bucks and the Toronto Raptors. Tatum is set to make his first appearance in the NBA All-Star Game this season as a reserve.” - Alexandra Francisco, NESN (2/12/20)

QUICK-HITTER: Casual NBA fans might not realize that Tatum has taken a massive leap forward this season. Heading into the new campaign, the youngster was already regarded as an elite on-ball defender, but his offensive game has clearly improved with the addition of Kemba Walker and exit of Kyrie Irving. Tatum will likely spend most of this game matched up against either Kawhi Leonard or Paul George, both of which are also elite two-way stars. Today’s NBA is clearly geared towards giving advantages to offensive players, but expect a gritty, physical contest in what will be the final game before the All-Star break. Could Tatum's matchup against LA's stars limit the point production on either side, or does it not matter? It's important to note that injuries (or load management) certainly played a role in LA being listed as an underdog ten times. Click the button below to find out if the over or under is the best bet in our model.

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