Luka returns to Dallas for the first time since the baffling trade which sent him to the Lakers in return for Anthony Davis and a bag of chips.
Since that trade, the Lakers have risen to new heights, and are on the brink or securing the 3rd seed in the West.
Meanwhile, the Mavs look to have been cursed by the basketball gods, losing Kyrie to an ACL rupture, while Gafford, Lively and AD have all missed substantial time through injury.
I dare say all the local fans will be cheering on Luka to drop a 50 piece on their disaster of a side.
Whether on not Luka obliges is up in the air, but I do believe the Lakers will have a easy time of it on the whole.
Both the Clippers and the Rockets carry serious form and momentum into this match-up, as the tussle for Western Conference seedings spices up.
The Clippers are 14-3 across their last 17 games, moving from play-in hopeful to 5th in the West, and within touching distance of 3rd.
Standing in their way are a Rockets outfit who are 15-2 across the same trip, and who have seen off the Clippers on three occasions already this season.
Playing into LA’s favour in this fixture is the fact that Houston have all but locked away the 2nd seed in the West and might take this game as an opportunity to rest players or experiment with the lineup.
That being said, no side plays harder than the Houston Rockets, they hold the fifth best defence in the league, one place behind the Clippers in that regard.
With the umpires starting to put their whistles away in anticipation for the play-offs, I’m backing this game to be a grind for both outfits.
Unders to solute.