Tip-off: Wednesday, 10:35 p.m. ET
Line: Clippers -10.5, Total: 215

Cross-town rivals, the Lakers and Clippers, meet for the second time this season on Wednesday night.

Overall the Lakers are a terrible team, but there is talent to be found, and they will put up a big game from time to time. In their past 11 contests, they are 3-8 SU, but 7-4 ATS, including a shocking 10-point victory as 10-point underdogs against the Warriors on Dec. 23. They have played rather well when considered big underdogs, covering in four of the past five games when getting at least 10 points. The club hit the road on Monday to face the Trail Blazers while playing without Kobe Bryant who was getting a day off. The rest of the team fought hard and were held a 3-point lead in the fourth quarter before narrowly losing by a score of 98-94 as 12.5-point underdogs. The Clippers have struggled with consistency all season long as evidenced by their 14-21 ATS record. Their recent solid play (3-1 SU in past four games) is somewhat masked by the fact that they were playing some of the worst teams in the league. Before Monday's loss to Atlanta, they had won by an average of 20.0 PPG against the likes of Utah, New York and Philadelphia. They weren’t able to keep their winning streak alive against the Hawks on Monday though, absorbing a 107-98 defeat as 5.5-point favorites while turning the ball over 21 times. The Lakers are deemed the visitor in their own arena in this one, and hold a record of 6-12 SU (11-7 ATS) as the away team, while the Clippers have gone a solid 15-5 SU (8-12 ATS) in home games, including a 4-2 SU mark (3-3 ATS) during the current nine-game homestand. The Clips have taken over this series since the start of the 2012-13 campaign, going 8-1 SU (7-2 ATS) in that time and have won each of their four home games, both SU and ATS. Earlier this season on Oct. 31, they were able to take down the Lakers by a score of 118-111 while giving 11.5-points as they won with their 12 three-pointers and 38-of-44 (86%) shooting from the foul line. Trends show that the boys in purple and gold have gone 54-24 ATS (69%) in road games after covering six or seven of their previous eight games ATS since 1996, while the Clippers are 17-7 ATS (71%) off an upset loss as a favorite over the past two seasons. The only injuries in this game are on the Lakers side of the ball, as PG Ronnie Price broke his nose on Monday, but is probable to play, while SF Wesley Johnson (hip), PF Julius Randle (tibia) and PG Steve Nash (back) all remain out.

Can the Clippers cover the huge spread against the rival Lakers on Wednesday? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks throughout the entire 2014-15 season. StatFox Forecaster has a strong 55% ATS record (89-72-1) in featured games this season. In terms of Best Bets, StatFox Scott is a sizzling 75% ATS (9-3) in Best Bets since Dec. 21, improving his record to 54% ATS (28-24) for the season. StatFox Brian is 62% ATS (18-11) in Best Bets since Nov. 29, and is now 55% ATS (28-23) in season Best Bets, while StatFox Gary is 54% ATS (15-13) in NBA Best Bets since Nov. 29, and is now 53% ATS (27-24) this season.

The Lakers offense has been able to score at a healthy clip all season, putting 102.0 PPG on the board (13th in NBA) behind just 43.9% shooting from the field (8th-worst in league). Where they really hurt themselves is on defense, where they have allowed the NBA's second most points (108.1 PPG) while letting opponents make 47.2% of their field goal attempts (2nd-worst in league). SG Kobe Bryant (23.6 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 5.3 APG, 1.5 SPG) has continued to be an elite scorer, and his all-around game has been huge over his past four contests (17.0 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 8.0 APG, 1.8 SPG, 53% threes). In his 65 career games (57 starts) against the Clippers, Bryant has tallied 25.9 PPG (47% FG), 5.2 RPG, 4.7 APG and 1.7 SPG. SG Nick Young (14.8 PPG, 43% threes) is always a threat to put up big numbers in the points column with at least 20 points in six of his games this season, but is shooting a poor 39% from the field and also has plenty of duds. He looked horrible in his three meetings (1 start) against the Clippers last season with 14.0 PPG (28% FG) to go along with 3.3 RPG and 1.0 SPG. C Jordan Hill (12.0 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 1.0 BPG) finally broke out of an extended slump with his strong performance (23 points, 14 rebounds) against the Trail Blazers on Monday night. He also did well in the first meeting with the Clippers this season, scoring a team-high 23 points and adding five rebounds.

The Clippers are once again one of the better offensive teams in the NBA this season, while netting 106.3 PPG (5th in league) behind 47.2% shooting as a group (4th in league). On the other hand, their defense has been rather suspect in giving up 100.2 PPG (12th-worst in league) and allowing opponents to hit 45.6% of their shots (11th-worst in league). PG Chris Paul (17.6 PPG, 9.5 APG, 4.7 RPG, 2.0 SPG) comes into this one with two straight double-doubles while making 42% of his shots from long range in the past five contests. He has always been a thorn in the Lakers’ side with 20.1 PPG (49% FG) to go along with 11.6 APG, 3.9 RPG and 2.5 SPG over 31 career meetings. PF Blake Griffin (22.5 PPG, 7.7 RPG) is coming off a big game (26 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists) against the Hawks on Monday night and put up one of his better performances of the season (39 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists) in the first meeting between these teams this season. Overall in his 16 career starts against Los Angeles, Griffin has gone for 22.5 PPG (52% FG), 9.9 RPG and 1.1 SPG. C DeAndre Jordan (9.4 PPG, 13.7 RPG, 2.3 BPG) has been a monster on the boards all season while getting double-digit rebounds in each of his past 13 performances. He had a double-double (11 points, 13 rebounds) to go along with two blocks and a steal the first time he saw the Lakers this season and scored 13.8 PPG (71% FG) with 11.3 RPG and 3.5 BPG over four games last season.