Thunder vs Clippers Free Pick, NBA Free Picks, NBA Predictions 3/23/25

OKLAHOMA CITY @ LA CLIPPERS (OKC -3.5, 228.5)

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Thunder vs Clippers Free Pick, NBA Free Picks, NBA Predictions 3/23/25

THUNDER @ CLIPPERS 3/23/25

The resurgent Los Angeles Clippers will now take on the best team in the West after winning eight of their last nine games, including a victory over the Eastern Conference's top team. Tonight in Inglewood, California, the seventh-place Clippers will square off against the Oklahoma City Thunder, a team that has won 12 of their last 13 games.

The Thunder are currently leading the NBA, even though the Cavaliers had the best record when the Clippers (40-30) defeated them 132-119 at home on Tuesday. The Thunder (58-12) actually secured the Western Conference's top playoff seed on Thursday.

Due to knee pain, Los Angeles star Kawhi Leonard missed the first three months of the season, but he has since made up for lost time. Over the last five games, he has averaged 26.6 points and 7.4 rebounds.

James Harden and Ivica Zubac, who started the game, are still producing, and Bogdan Bogdanovic, who was acquired from the Atlanta Hawks at the trade deadline, has been a revelation. In 18 games with his new team, Bogdanovic has averaged 12.8 points, including 17.0 points in his last five games. He has also shot 15 of 19 (78.9 percent) from 3-point range and 74.4 percent from the field during that stretch.

The Thunder, who have now secured the top seed in the Western Conference for the last two seasons, are accustomed to playing smoothly. And they have even more history of dominating the Clippers. In 2024–25, Oklahoma City has a 3-0 record against Los Angeles and an 8-2 record over the previous three seasons against its conference rival.

When the Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Milwaukee Bucks on Thursday, the Thunder secured the Western Conference’s top seed. After defeating the Charlotte Hornets 141-106 at home on Friday, they celebrated.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a former Clipper, leads the NBA in scoring at 32.9 points per game and scored 30 points against the Hornets. Isaiah Hartenstein, another former Clipper, finished with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Oklahoma City's second-leading scorer Jalen Williams (21.3 points) has missed the last five games with a hip injury, while Lu Dort has missed the past three games with his own hip issue.

The Thunder will play in Sacramento on Tuesday to begin a short two-game trip to California. The team, which is 30-5 at home this season, will play six of its next seven games at home in Oklahoma City.

Assistant coach Brian Shaw has been leading the Clippers while head coach Tyronn Lue has missed five of the team's last seven games due to back pain.

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COACH RICK FREE PICK:

THUNDER OVER 115.5

The Thunder may have the NBA’s best defense, but they can fill it up on offense too. They rank 4th in the league in scoring averaging 120.1 points per game. The Thunder have cleared tonight’s team total in 8 of their last 10 games, 16 of their last 20, and in 65 percent of their games this season. OKC has played the Clippers three times this season and they’ve gone Over this number in two of them. In fact, the Thunder have gone Over the number in 5 of the last 6 against the Clippers.