The second iteration of the Los Angeles battle is here, as LeBron and Harden clash Sunday night. The Lakers are coming off a very poor stretch following their conquest of the first-ever In-Season Tournament. On the other hand completely, the Clippers have been one of the top sides in the NBA for the last month and a half. Their positive run comes after they began the Harden era with a 0-6 record, starting on November 2nd.

The Lakers currently find themselves outside the Play-In zone with a 17-19 record, just a game shy of Golden State. The Clippers continue to surge in a hotly contested race for the Western-Conference’s top spots. Tyronn Lue’s team are in fourth place, but could easily catch up to the Nuggets and Thunder next week. All four of their stars are contributing to the Clippers’ success so far. Harden is averaging close to 9 assists, while Kawhi is shooting nearly 50% from 3 in recent weeks. George is also having an amazing season so far. But its the entire team that is effectively contributing, as Powell and Westbrook have been key coming off the bench too.

The Lekers have been somewhat of a disappointment. While AD is playing at a DPOY level, and LeBron os again showing us all that he is still among the best players in the league, the rest of the team are struggling mightily. Three-point shooting has been a problem for the Lakers for years, and they still seem to be unable to improve. Reaves is the only role player that contributes somewhat significantly. The likes of Russell, Prince, Reddish and others have been misused or are simply not good enough. Darvin Ham needs to find a solution ASAP if he wants to challenge the West.

That being said, the Lakers had been on a 10+ game losing streak to the Clippers before winning an OT thriller in early November. However it is difficult to see past the Clippers this time around, simply for the teams’ current trajectories. We therefore suggests the following plays. A Clippers win is advisable at 1.60, Davis to have the most points at 2.60 and Harden to have over 9.5 assists at 2.10.

Play here today: https://coingames.fun/en/sports#/event/67/0/2980/all/8965622

LA Lakers to Win – 2.40

LA Clippers to Win – 1.60