NBA betting: The influence of the Clippers' recent success on wagering and fantasy

NBA betting: The influence of the Clippers' recent success on wagering and fantasy

After James Harden was acquired by the Clippers on October 31, the team dropped five straight games when he entered the starting lineup on November 6.

Whenever I was asked at the time if Harden and the Clippers could collaborate, I would always respond in the same way: on paper, Harden's skill set could complement that of Russell Westbrook, Paul George, and Kawhi Leonard, but the players' willingness and attitudes would need to match.

All four of them score a lot of ISO, and Harden and Westbrook especially have a propensity to be ball-dominant floor generals who set up plays for teammates and themselves. However, in order for them to play together, players must be willing to play off the ball, and Westbrook isn't a good enough shooter for that to be his role. Harden, however, does; he becomes a proficient shooter, joining Leonard and George.

I reasoned that if Harden switched from a shooting to a secondary engine/shooter role off the ball, with Westbrook setting the tone and the other three as excellent finishers who could also penetrate defences that aren't balanced, the four of them could play well together. That was my initial thought at the time of the trade.

After that, Harden gave his first press conference and rejected the notion that he could work with other players in a system. Rather, he said, "I am the system."

Oh no.

Given Harden's expressed mindset, it seemed inevitable that the Clippers would collapse. And for the first few weeks, they did. Then, something incredible occurred.

According to reports, Westbrook offered to come off the bench for the Clippers. This is the same Westbrook who had complained bitterly about going off the bench during his previous stints and who had been a bit of a problem for the Lakers the past two seasons due to his competition with LeBron James for the floor general position.

And then everything was different.

The Clippers have won 10 of their past 13 games since Westbrook was benched. Their average scoring margin of +7.3 points per game, if it were their season average, would place them second in the Western Conference and fourth in the NBA. They are currently the NBA's longest winning run at five games, and they have risen to third place in the Pacific Division and the eighth seed in the Western Conference.

The answer to the issue of whether this Clippers squad could gel and win after Harden was traded appears to be, at least in part, yes. The following queries now come up: What does this "new normal" look like in terms of individual player productivity for fantasy basketball and betting? And going ahead, how do the Clippers slot into the many NBA races?

What the statistics indicate

The first five games of the season before Harden, the first five games of the Harden era when all four started, and the last 13 games with Harden starting and Westbrook coming off the bench will be compared for each of the four primary players' individual offensive production.

Each player's scoring average (PPG), field goal attempts (FGA), made 3-pointers (PG) and 3-point percentage (3P%), assists per game (APG), and turnovers (TO) are displayed on the charts.