LeBron James and the Lakers look to take a commanding 2-0 lead in their Best-of-Seven series against Kevin Durant and the Rockets tonight at crypto.com Arena in Southern California.
The question for the Rockets is “will Durant play”? The all-time great did not dress for the series opener due to a knee injury. Without him, the Rockets looked out of sorts and that is putting it kindly. Without their two leading scorers, Luka Doncic (hamstring) and Austin Reaves (oblique), the Lakers rolled in Game 1 to a 107-98 win over the Houston Rockets.
Four-time NBA MVP LeBron James took over as the Lakers’ No. 1 option with both Doncic and Reaves out. James rose to the occasion, posting 19 points, a game-high 13 assists and 8 rebounds. The Lakers also got a major contribution from Luke Kennard, who finished with a season-high 27 points (9-for-13 shooting, including 5- for-5 from three).
The Lakers succeeded in slowing down the pace of the game in Game 1, scoring just four fast break points in the win. Those four points tied for the second-fewest fast break points the Lakers recorded in a game this season. As a result of the slower pace, LA had fewer possessions but they made the most of them. The Lakers took only 66 field goal attempts but shot 60.6% from the field (40-for-66). As a reference point, the Lakers only shot 60% or better from the field 3 times during the regular season.
The stakes are of course high tonight, but specific to Game 2, know this stat: The Lakers have won 32 straight series after winning the first game of a playoff series, which is the longest streak in NBA history. The last time LA lost a series after going up 1-0 was in their 1993 First Round series against Phoenix (the Lakers were up 2-0 and lost in five games, 3-2).
Lets take a closer look at tonight’s matchup and take into consideration lineups, injuries, and other factors affecting the line and total.
We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on how to catch tipoff, odds courtesy of DraftKings recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.
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The latest odds as of Tuesday courtesy of DraftKings:
Moneyline: Los Angeles Lakers (+160), Houston Rockets (-192)
This game opened Rockets -4.5 with the Game Total set at 205.5.
Be sure to check out DraftKings for all the latest game odds & player props for every matchup this week on the NBA schedule!
Luka Doncic (hamstring) is listed as doubtful for tonight’s game
Austin Reaves (oblique) is listed as doubtful for tonight’s game
Kevin Durant (knee) is questionable for tonight’s game
Fred VanVleet (knee) has been declared OUT of tonight’s game
Steven Adams (ankle) has been declared OUT of tonight’s game
The OVER has cashed in 39 of the Rockets’ 83 games this season (39-44)
The OVER has cashed in 42 of the Lakers’ 83 games this season (42-41)