Magic at Clippers NBA Pick for Tuesday, March 30

Tuesday’s NBA schedule features four games to bet on, including one that looks like a serious mismatch on paper. The Orlando Magic, who traded away most of their core last week ahead of the deadline, will face the Clippers in Los Angeles.

The Magic are 11.5-point underdogs in this one. Given the state of Orlando’s roster, it’s fair to assume this won’t be the last time we see this team listed as a double-digit underdog between now and the end of the season. You can make the argument that Michael Carter-Williams is the Magic’s best remaining player, which…yikes!

Moneyline Betting Odds: Orlando Magic vs LA Clippers

• Los Angeles Clippers (-710)
• Orlando Magic (+530)

Spread Betting Odds: Magic vs Clippers

• Los Angeles Clippers -11.5 (-112)
• Orlando Magic +11.5 (-108)

Over/Under Betting Odds: Magic at Clippers

• Over 215 (-110)
• Under 215 (-110)

Of course, Orlando does have somethings going in their favor tonight. The Magic haven’t played since Sunday, while the Clippers just played last night. LA is also shorthanded right now, with Patrick Beverley and Serge Ibaka both sidelined with injuries. The Clippers were also playing without Paul George last night as a result of a foot ailment, and he’s listed as questionable to play tonight. We also know that Kawhi Leonard is a candidate to rest on the second night of the back-to-back.

The Clips are justifiable favorites in this one, but this game may not be quite as lopsided as the betting line may lead you to believe.

Who Will Score for Orlando?

At this point, it’s clear that the Magic are doing their best to tank for lottery balls. You don’t trade Nikola Vucevic, Evan Fournier, and Aaron Gordon in one day if you’re planning on trying to win games any time soon. The Magic have finally hit the “reset” button, which has been a long time coming.

Orlando is 0-2 since the deadline, though they did give the Lakers a good run on Sunday night. The other LA team is playing without LeBron James and Anthony Davis, of course, but Orlando managed to keep the game within three points.

Rj Hampton in his magic debut

17 minutes

10 points

3 rebounds

1 assist

4-8 50% FG

Young stud 🔥💯 pic.twitter.com/2mNlkQAJxA

— Lincoln ⭐️🇱🇷 (@kinglinxs1) March 29, 2021

The Magic will probably win a game between now and the end of the season, but they might not be favored in a single one of them. Terrence Ross is dealing with an injury right now, which leaves this team incredibly thin on offensive options. Dwayne Bacon, who scored 26 points against the Lakers, has taken over as the de facto No. 1 option for this team.

RJ Hampton, Chuma Okeke, and Mo Bamba figure to see plenty of playing time as the Magic use the rest of the campaign to get a look at their young talent. Carter-Williams was held scoreless in 13 minutes against the Lakers before leaving the game injured. If he’s out tonight, the Magic are looking at Hampton, Karime Mane, and Chasson Randle to handle most of the point guard duties.

Will Kawhi and George Suit Up?

Frankly, the Clippers probably don’t need both Leonard and George to play in this game in order to win it. The Magic are so terrible at this point that LAC’s backups would still be betting favorites to win this one. LA enters this game at 32-16 on the season and riding a six-game winning streak. The Clips walloped the Bucks by 24 points just last night without three starters, which was one of the team’s most impressive wins of the entire season.

It’s certainly possible we see some shenanigans from the Clips tonight. This team has been known to get wonky with its injury report. Just before the All-Star break, both Leonard and George were scratched from consecutive games after the scheduled tip-off time. It’s no guarantee that the Clippers will be anywhere close to full strength for this game, especially after having played just last night.

🏀 FINAL SCORE THREAD 🏀

Russell Westbrook puts up the FIRST 35-point, 20-assist triple-double in NBA HISTORY to lift the @WashWizards!

Russ: 35 PTS, 14 REB, 21 AST

Rui Hachimura: 26 PTS

Chandler Hutchison: 18 PTS pic.twitter.com/WSPSuuSYXk

— NBA (@NBA) March 30, 2021

The Clips have enough depth to win this game even if both of their All-Stars sit out. All of Marcus Morris (25), Luke Kennard (21), and Reggie Jackson (20) topped 20 points in last night’s win over Orlando, while Terance Mann has played incredibly well since Lou Williams was shipped to Atlanta ahead of the trade deadline. Nicolas Batum and Ivica Zubac are both perfectly capable of giving Ty Lue quality minutes, as well.

There is also a chance we see George return while Leonard takes the night off. Kawhi missed the second game of a back-to-back just last week with a “sore foot.” What did George miss last night’s game with? You guessed it. A “sore foot.”

What’s the Best Bet?

Given the Clippers’ proclivity for keeping their injury report a secret, there is certainly some risk to taking LA to cover the hefty 11.5-point spread in this game. If we hear that George, Leonard, or both plan to miss this game, the spread is going to shrink between now and tip.

That said, the Clips’ group of bench players would still be good enough to start and play prominent roles for this iteration of the Magic. Even if Lue’s rotation is thinner than usual tonight, the Clips still feel like a pretty safe bet to take care of business against a team that has no vested interest in actually winning basketball games at this stage of the season.

There’s no point in betting the moneyline here for the Clippers’ at -710, but there is merit to taking the Clippers to cover this sizable spread at home. Even with a few things working against them tonight, it’s hard to imagine LAC having a particularly difficult time against a G League-quality opponent.