Michael Alexander

Rating: 3 Units

Hope you bought your ticket on the Clippers to win this series while they were down 0-2 and the odds were better. In Game 3, Tyronn Lue and staff switched back to a smaller starting lineup without a traditional center (same as in Game 1, a 3-point road loss), forcing Utah’s interior defensive monster Rudy Gobert to look around for somebody to defend on the perimeter, which allowed L.A. to attack him away from his comfort zone. Following the 26-point win in Game 3, the Clippers could have the Jazz on their heels. Utah’s do-it-all guard Donovan Mitchell entered the post-season off an ankle injury, left Game 3 with an ankle injury. Point guard Mike Conley – who averaged 17.4 ppg and 8.6 assists in Utah’s First Round series – has missed all three games of this series with a hamstring injury. The ball is in their hands a lot, and they are the two best at creating good shots for themselves on a team for which somebody else is destined to be taking a three-pointer from here, or there, or over there, or from wherever they think they have enough space.

Rating: 3 Units

It’s impossible to stop real good players but containment is the key. Trae Young makes Atlanta go and if his offense can be disrupted, it can stop the Hawks from doing what they want to do on the floor. The ball stuck on the Atlanta side on Friday as they only had 15 assists to 28 for Philly. Not only did Philly’s Ben Simmons do a great job on Young in the last game, he was aggressive offensively. Ben was 7 for 11 from the floor and he can post up anybody on Atlanta except for maybe Clint Capela. If he can again slow down Young, Philly should be able to take a commanding lead in the series. Losing Danny Green, with all of his championship experience, is a blow to the Sixers but Philly has a number of players that can fill in for him. Matisse Thybulle, Shake Milton, Tyrese Maxey and Forkan Korkmaz are all capable of hitting big shots. George Hill gives Philly an edge as an experienced player and if Tobias Harris can keep on producing it will take pressure off of Joel Embiid.

Rating: 2 Units

Few starters are as imposing looking as the White Sox’ ’5”, 280 Lance Lynn, or can eat as many innings as Lynn, who almost always goes 6 or 7 and whose team has won 7 of his 11 starts this season. But the Rays’ 6’8”, 225 Tyler Glasnow can challenge Lynn in both departments, having gone 7 or 8 innings in four of his last five starts. Through 13 starts and 84 IP, Glasnow has 117-26 K-BB, a 2.57 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. Glasnow’s Innings Per Start and Strikeout Rate are better than Lynn’s. His team is 23-10 on the road and has won 23 of its last 28 games.

Rating: 2 Units

The Cubs are coming off a three-game sweep of the hated Cardinals to put them in a tie with Milwaukee atop the NL Central. So, is it time to send it in on the Mets, a frequent move against the series-sweeping team in their next game? Eh, well, not so fast, my friends. Can’t do that every single time.  Remember ‘Spahn, Sain and pray for rain?’ The Mets have, ‘Degrom, Stroman, W alker and… Ahhhh! David Peterson!!! We need 11 runs!!’ Peterson, in his second MLB season, is the “Which Doesn’t Belong and Why” in the Mets’ rotation, with a 6.32 ERA and 1.51 WHIP after 11 starts. Peterson lasted 3 1/3 innings against the Cubs in Wrigley Field back on April 21 in a 16-4 loss. He exits a 10-3 loss in Baltimore last week in which he went 2 2/3 innings, after failing to get out of the first inning in a 7-6 loss in Arizona, a team that can’t buy a win lately. Jake Arrieta may not be Mr. No Hitter anymore, but we’re inclined to give the 12-season veteran and 2015 NL Cy Young Award winner the benefit of the doubt when teamed with the Cubs’ bullpen (2.59 ERA).