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While the NBA investigates owner Steve Ballmer and allegations of salary cap circumvention, the Los Angeles Clippers will still have a season, and one that is filled with relatively high expectations. At 48.5, only seven teams have a higher betting win total entering the season.
The franchise, once dubbed “Lob City” for its young, acrobatic dunkers, now has the oldest roster in league history. The average age of each player is 33.2 years, but the Clippers are quite deep, so the veterans are not expected to log heavy minutes.
Plus, the Clippers seemingly addressed significant issues this past offseason. They ranked 20th in scoring and 25th in 3-pointers made, so adding point guard Chris Paul and shooting guard Bradley Beal should help address those areas.
With lead assistant coach Jeff Van Gundy continuing as the team’s defensive specialist, the defense that ranked third last year should be strong again this season.
Los Angeles Clippers head coach Tyronn Lue looks on during the first half of an NBA basketball preseason game against the Sacramento Kings, Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025, in Sacramento, Calif. AP
The Clippers open as 9.5-point road favorites at the Utah Jazz on Wednesday with a total of 226.5 points.
Utah won a league-worst 17 games last year, and the roster is worse on paper. I actually believe the Jazz will find more wins for a few reasons, but I do not think those will manifest themselves on Opening Night.
Betting on the NBA?
The Clippers have a huge depth and experience edge and should dominate a Utah roster that mostly consists of young players trying to find their place in the NBA.
I have a 71-57-2 ATS record in this Post sports section, pending a selection Tuesday night, and my next play is the Clippers laying the 9.5 points (-110, FanDuel Sportsbook).
Why Trust New York Post Betting
Doug Kezirian is a New York Post contributor who has over two decades of experience in the betting space, including spending 11 years at ESPN as a host, columnist and betting analyst. He’s also the rare personality who has documented success – 14th place in 2023 Circa Million and Las Vegas SuperContest ($37K), two top-10 finishes in 2022 William Hill College Football Challenge ($58K) and also grabbed headlines with a $297K win on the 2021 NFL Draft.