Jazz vs Clippers

Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers are riding a five-game win streak and suddenly own a much healthier point differential than their 11-21 record suggests, while Utah comes in off a loss and still sits at -6.7 per game with a 12-20 mark.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nba/standings)) The key here is how undermanned the Jazz are: Jusuf Nurkic, Ace Bailey, Kevin Love, Georges Niang and season-ending casualty Walker Kessler are all ruled out, with Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George only listed as questionable, while the Clippers’ absences (Ivica Zubac, Bradley Beal, Bogdan Bogdanović) hurt less because their core of Leonard, James Harden and Brook Lopez is intact.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nba/team/injuries/_/name/utah)) LA has also been dominant at the new Intuit Dome, smashing the Lakers, Rockets, Pistons and Kings during this current surge, whereas Utah just lost at home to Boston and has already dropped two tight ones to the Clippers this season after blowing them out in the opener when they were far healthier.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/lac)) The moneyline price is extremely heavy, so from a bankroll perspective the value is limited even if the win probability is very high, which is why this recommendation on Clippers ML sits at a B- rather than in the A range. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 01/01/2026 10:45

Lauri Markkanen’s Jazz have played in track meets all year (their games average roughly 247 total points), but that was largely with a full offensive core, and tonight they’re missing Nurkic plus multiple rotation pieces while both Markkanen and George are only game-time calls.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nba/standings)) The Clippers’ recent surge has featured explosive scoring nights from Harden, Leonard and Lopez, yet their own season-long profile is more mid-pack offensively (112.1 PPG, 114.0 allowed), and their best lineups at Intuit Dome have defended at a much higher level than their early-season numbers.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nba/standings)) If even one of Markkanen or George sits, Utah’s half-court creation drops off a cliff, and with LA favored by double digits there’s real blowout risk leading to a slower, bench-heavy fourth quarter that can bleed clock and favor the under on a very high 232.5 total. Given the clash between Utah’s overall high-tempo stats and tonight’s injury-driven context, the Under 232.5 gets only a C+ grade for a modest edge that’s heavily contingent on late news. Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 01/01/2026 10:45

The Jazz catching +12.5 points is a massive cushion for a team that, when Markkanen and George are on the floor, has shown it can hang offensively with just about anyone, including recent wins over Detroit and San Antonio and multiple one- or two-possession losses against stronger Eastern teams.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nba/team/schedule/_/name/utah)) Even acknowledging how short-handed their frontcourt is without Kessler, Nurkic, Niang and Bailey, Utah’s remaining top-end talent matches up reasonably against a Clippers side missing its starting center (Zubac) and key scoring depth in Beal and Bogdanović, which thins out LA’s ability to sustain blowout-level pressure for 48 minutes.([espn.com](https://www.espn.com/nba/team/injuries/_/name/utah)) Historically, Markkanen has produced well versus the Clippers (around 19 and 9 over his last 15 meetings), while Leonard has been excellent but not unstoppable against Utah over the past five years, so if even one of Utah’s questionable stars goes, the backdoor cover and general competitiveness of a double-digit dog look attractive enough to rate Jazz +12.5 at a B- grade despite LA’s clear edge straight up.([statmuse.com](https://www.statmuse.com/nba/ask/lauri-markkanen-last-15-games-vs-clippers?utm_source=openai)) Odds and availability are subject to change. This bet was made at 01/01/2026 10:45