Denver Nuggets vs Los Angeles Clippers Prediction, 5/1/2025 Preview and Pick

Game: Denver Nuggets vs Los Angeles Clippers

Date: Thursday, May 1, 2025

Location: Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, CA

TV: TNT

Odds/Point Spread: Denver (+7.0)

The Los Angeles Clippers (50-32) will take on the Denver Nuggets (50-32) at Crypto.com Arena on Thursday in Game 6 of the Western Conference First Round. Denver holds a 3 - 2 series lead. Los Angeles opens as 7-point favorites. The total comes in at 212.

The Nuggets played the Clippers and notched a win by a score of 131-115 in Game 5. Denver walked away from the game having earned a 55.8% FG percentage (48 out of 86) and knocked down 17 out of their 33 three-point attempts. At the free throw line, the Nuggets converted 18 of 23 tries for a percentage of 78.3%. Pertaining to grabbing boards, they earned a total of 38 with 8 of them being on the offensive end. They also dished out 29 dimes for the contest in addition to forcing the opposition into 10 turnovers and getting 7 steals. Regarding defense, Denver allowed the other team to go 52.4% from the field on 43 out of 82 shooting. Los Angeles distributed 29 assists and had 6 steals in the matchup. On top of that, Los Angeles totaled 38 rebounds (10 offensive, 28 defensive) and got 7 blocks. Los Angeles finished shooting 64.3% at the free throw line by making 18 of 28 shots. They also buried 11 of 29 attempts from downtown. With respect to personal fouls, the Nuggets walked away with 21 while the Clippers totaled 21 personal fouls.

Jamal Murray is a guy who played a role for the contest. Murray finished the contest at 65.4% from the floor and also distributed 7 assists. He played for 40 minutes played and also pulled down 5 rebounds. He accounted for 43 points on 17 of 26 shooting.

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Denver comes into this one with a mark of 50-32 on the year. They have an average of 120.8 points per game (3rd in the NBA) while shooting 50.6% from the floor. The Nuggets are shooting 37.6% on three-point shots (984 of 2,619) and 77.0% from the free throw line. As a unit, Denver is collecting 45.7 boards per game and has racked up 2,542 assists so far this season, which ranks 1st in basketball in terms of passing the rock. They are losing possession via turnover 14.3 times per game and as a basketball team are committing 17.6 fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Nuggets are able to force 13.0 turnovers every game while drawing 19.0 fouls. They give up 36.5% on shots from downtown and they rank 25th in the NBA in points per game allowed (116.9). The Nuggets defensively are giving up an opponent FG percentage of 46.6% (3,554 of 7,629) and they relinquish 42.5 boards per game as a team. They currently rank 29th in the league in giving up assists to the opposition with 2,379 relinquished for the year.

In Game 5, In regard to rebounds, Los Angeles allowed Denver to collect 38 overall (8 offensive). They went 51.5% from three-point range by connecting on 17 of 33 and ended up shooting 18 out of 23 at the free throw line (78.3%). The Clippers permitted the Nuggets to convert 48 out of their 86 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 55.8% in the game. In all, the Clippers ended up going 43 out of 82 from the floor which had them shooting 52.4%. Pertaining to three-point attempts, Los Angeles knocked down 11 out of their 29 attempts (37.9%). They were able to convert 18 of those for a rate of 64.3%. The Nuggets earned 21 personal fouls for this contest which got the Clippers to the charity stripe for a total of 28 attempts. They also coughed up the ball 10 times, while recording 6 steals for the matchup. The Clippers collected 28 defensive boards and 10 offensive boards totaling 38 for this contest.

Ivica Zubac pitched in for the Clippers for this game. Zubac earned 27 points in his 37 minutes of playing time and added 1 assist in this matchup. He buried 11 out of 15 for this game giving him a field goal percentage of 73.3%, and had 5 rebounds.

Los Angeles has a record of 50-32 this year. As an offensive team, the Clippers are shooting 48.2% from the field, which ranks 6th in the NBA. Los Angeles has tallied 9,256 points on the year (112.9 per contest) and they collect 43.8 rebounds per contest. They are earning an assist 25.2 times per contest (23rd in the league) and they are losing possession via turnover 14.9 times per game. The Clippers are responsible for committing 18.3 personal fouls every game and they hit 79.7% from the charity stripe.

The Los Angeles defense gives up 35.0% on shots from behind the 3-point line (1,064 of 3,038) and opponents are making 77.2% of their free throw attempts. They allow 25.7 dimes and 41.5 boards per contest, which is ranked 9th and 1st in the NBA. The Clippers on the defensive side of the court are 4th in the league in PPG surrendered with 108.2. They are able to force 15.0 turnovers per game and allow teams to shoot 46.1% from the field (8th in basketball).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Los Angeles (-7.0)

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