In Game 2 of the first round of the playoff series, the Los Angeles Lakers are at the Denver Nuggets on Monday. The Denver Nuggets won the first game by 11 points on Saturday night. The Lakers will look to tie the series before the two teams head to Los Angeles for the next two games.
The Lakers are the 7th seed in the West. Los Angeles won their play-in game on the road at New Orleans. That came after they finished with the 8th best record, at 47-35 on the season. The Lakers won their final two regular season games and 7 out of 10 before the postseason started.
For the Nuggets, they are the second seed in the West. The Nuggets are the defending NBA Champions, and tied with Oklahoma City at 57-25. The Thunder grabbed the top seed, so the Nuggets got the winner of the Lakers/Pelicans. This is a rematch of the Western Conference Finals a season ago.
The Denver Nuggets are -7.5 in this game over the Lakers.
Underdog Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers saw Anthony Davis and LeBron James combine for 59 points, but in a losing cause. Davis scored 32 and ripped down 14 rebounds, while James played 40 minutes and scored 27 points. Those two have been the leaders all season long. James led the team with 25.7 per game, while Davis was just shy of 25 per game.
The Lakers are shooting nearly 50% from the field this season. The Lakers make nearly 12 three point shots per game, and 38% from downtown. Los Angeles dishes out 28.5 assists per game, and rips down more than 43 per game.
Los Angeles hopes to get more from Rui Hacimura, who scored 7 points and had just 3 rebounds on Saturday.
Defending Champion Nuggets
The defending NBA Champion Denver Nuggets saw their best player take over the game. Nikola Jokic was strong again with 32 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Jamal Murray was strong as well with 22 points and 10 assists.
Christian Braun has been good for Denver in his second year with the team, Braun is the sixth man for the Nuggets. Despite scoring just 2 in the win on Saturday, he has shown great stride in his ability to score for the Nuggets.
Denver scored 114.9 points per game during the regular season. The Nuggets made nearly 50% of their shots. The Nuggets also make just shy of 12 three point shots per game The Nuggets are averaging 44.4 rebounds per game as well.
Lakers Compete; Nuggets Win
The Lakers are going to give a pretty good effort in this game. The Lakers do not want to go back home without a win in the first two games. In the end though, despite the Lakers great effort, the Nuggets are going to come away with the win in this game.
The Lakers cover the spread, but the Nuggets win the game. Our final bet for this game is the Denver Nuggets -7.5 over the Los Angeles Lakers. Enjoy the game and good luck!
