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Monday’s NBA Matchup to Watch (Clippers vs Suns)

Los Angeles Clippers vs Phoenix Suns

(14-5)                                       (12-9)

Start Time: 10:30 PM

TV Channel: Local/League Pass

Preview: Back on November 15th, the last time these two teams faced off, Chris Paul was absolutely on fire and contributed 32 points including 5-6 from 3-point range, 9 assists, and 5 rebounds in a game where the Clippers beat the Suns by a score of 120-107. The score of this game does not show everything, though, as the Suns looked statistically better throughout most of the game except for one key area; Field Goal Percentage. Phoenix was atrocious on the offensive end, only making 38% of field goals and 36% of 3’s. If the Suns had been able to finish on the offensive end, this game may have had a different outcome. Today is a new day, however, and the Suns will look to bounce back from a tough loss to a very talented Houston Rockets team that defeated Phoenix by 5 points on Saturday night. Los Angeles, on the other hand, has looked very sharp as of late and will be looking to build off their 7-game win streak which included one against those same Rockets. This is going to be a very interesting game as the Suns are a primarily offensive based team while the Clippers are more balanced on both ends of the court, only allowing 98.5 points per games (9th best in NBA). If the Suns want to get revenge on PG Chris Paul and the Clippers, they will need to have contributors all throughout their team which could be difficult should key 6th man, Isaiah Thomas, not be available tonight due to an ankle injury.

Prediction: I think the Los Angeles Clippers will come out of this game with a win tonight as they look to be a more complete team so far this season than the Suns and also have some momentum as they have won 10 out of their last 11 games.

Points Per Game Leaders:

PHX – Goran Dragic (16.0 PPG) LAC – Blake Griffin (22.9 PPG)

Rebounds Per Game Leaders:

PHX – Markieff Morris (6.6 RPG) LAC – DeAndre Jordan (12.2 RPG)

Assists Per Game Leaders:

PHX – Eric Bledsoe (5.7 APG) LAC – Chris Paul (9.8 APG)

Monday’s NBA Matchup to Watch

Toronto Raptors vs Phoenix Suns

(11-2)                                (9-5)

Preview: These teams are both coming into this game on a four-game win streak and look to improve that as they face off in Toronto. The Raptors are up 1.5 games in the East for 1st place, ahead of the Wizards, while the Suns are 3 games out of first sitting in 7th place in a tough Western Conference. This is going to be a primarily offensive minded game as the Raptors score the 2nd most points per game and the Suns score the 4th most. DeMar DeRozan has looked really strong this year on the offensive end, 20 PPG, and if he is able to take over this game, it could be over really quick. However, the Phoenix bench has looked very strong and could outlast Toronto as the Suns tend to take Gerald Green and Isaiah Thomas, who combined for 39 points last game, off the bench and use them for their own advantage against the other teams’ reserves.

Prediction: I think that the Raptors will end up winning this game in a very high-scoring one, solely because the Suns allow the 23rd most points per game and their defense will be no match for a very strong Toronto offense.

Points Per Game Leaders:

TOR – DeMar DeRozan (20.0 PPG) PHX – Isaiah Thomas (15.4 PPG)

Rebounds Per Game Leaders:

TOR – Jonas Valanciunas (7.8 RPG) PHX – Miles Plumlee (6.5 RPG)

Assists Per Game Leaders:

TOR – Kyle Lowry (6.0 APG) PHX – Eric Bledsoe (5.5 APG)