Portland Blazers vs LA Clippers Game 5 Preview and Free Pick

During the course of a 7-game playoff series, you expect that there will be some twists and turns along the way. A single moment in a game can have a butterfly effect that alters the course of that series moving forward. You have to wonder of the news that Chris Paul broke his hand during Game 4 of the LA Clippers and Portland Trail Blazers series is going to be what causes the momentum shift here. In fairness to Portland, that shift was already starting to take place, as they had come back from a 2-0 series deficit to tie it 2-2. It has been home court that has been the advantage here so far, and the Clippers will be hoping to steal some of that momentum back when they head to the Staples Center for Game 5 on Wednesday night. They are going to have to get the job done without Paul in the line-up, which may now be how they have to play the rest of the postseason. You can wager on this series by visiting the MyBookie.ag NBA betting lines page.

How To Bet The Trail Blazers vs Clippers NBA Playoffs Odds, TV & Game Info

When: Wednesday, April 27 at 10 PM EST Where: Staples Center, LA TV: NBATV Radio: Trail Blazers and Clippers Live Stream: NBATV NBA Odds: TBA

Why bet on the Portland Trail Blazers

It would have been easy for the Trail Blazers to simply lay down and quit after losing the first two games of this series, but they raised their game and got themselves back into it with back to back wins on home court. They did this by playing some stifling defense and holding the LA Clippers to less than 90 points in both games. That was in stark contrast to their 3 games in LA, where they allowed the Clippers to cross the 100-point mark on both occasions. The Trail Blazers have not had a lot of success playing in LA in recent years, but with the injury to Chris Paul, you sense that they might just smell the blood in the water.

Why bet on the LA Clippers

The Clippers were able to still maintain a winning record when Blake Griffin went out with a broken hand earlier this season, and they are going to have to do the same without Chris Paul. The good news for the Clippers is that they have owned Portland on home court, and have won 8 of their last 10 regular season meetings in LA. That said, they need to get back to playing better on the offensive end of the court, which is going to be easier said than done with Paul out of the line-up. Look for Blake Griffin to step up and take control in Game 5.

Expert Pick and Final Score Prediction

The key to winning this tight series is holding serve on home court, and given how the Clippers have performed against the Trail Blazers at the Staples Center in recent years, you have to like their chances of doing just that. Portland Trail Blazers 101 LA Clippers 104