Will the Lakers have LeBron James in the lineup for Wednesday’s showdown with Russell Westbrook and the Oklahoma City Thunder? LeBron hasn’t suited up since being injured on Christmas and obviously, his status would affect the NBA lines for this one. He’s not expected to play.
How to Bet Thunder vs Lakers NBA Odds & Game Info
- When: Wednesday, 10:30 PM ET
- Where: Staples Center, LA
- TV: ESPN
- Live Stream: WatchESPN
- Radio: TuneIn
- NBA Odds: Oklahoma City Thunder -5.5 (Total 229.5)
Team Records
- All: Thunder 23-13 / Lakers 21-16
- Home: Thunder 13-4 / Lakers 13-6
- Away: Thunder 10-9 / Lakers 8-10
- ATS: Thunder 20-16 / Lakers 17-20
- Over/Under: Thunder 15-19-2 / Lakers 14-22-1
Season Series
First meeting. The teams have met 246 times in the regular season (142-104) but just 35 times (14-21) since the Thunder relocated to Oklahoma City prior to the 2008-09 season. The Lakers are 19-17 all-time against Oklahoma City at Staples Center. Last year, the teams split four meetings.
Why Bet on Oklahoma City?
OKC completed a home-and-home with Dallas on Monday. The Thunder lost in Big D on Sunday, 105-103, and then beat the visiting Mavericks 122-102 on Monday. Russell Westbrook triple-doubled in the win with 32 points, 11 rebounds, 11 assists, four steals and five turnovers in 34 minutes. He was 13-of-24 from the field and 6-of-6 from the line, a nice bounce-back effort after his 4-for-22 shooting performance on Sunday.
Steven Adams hit 5-of-8 shots for 12 points with 13 rebounds, four assists, and one steal in 33 minutes Monday. The Mavericks fouled him early and often, as Adams finished 2-of-8 from the free throw line. That knocked him down to 53% on the season. Alex Abrines (personal) didn’t play Monday, his fourth straight game out of the lineup. That has meant more minutes for Hamidou Diallo and Abdel Nader.
Following a 0-4 start to the season, Oklahoma City has gone 23-9, the best record in the NBA across that span. The Thunder have held the highest net rating, defensive rating, steals per game and points off opponent turnovers in that span. Paul George has grabbed the second-most steals (64) behind Westbrook (73) and holds the best +/- rating in the league (+10.5) while Adams holds the third-best +/- rating at +9.4 and the best shooting percentage on the team (60.1) with Jerami Grant (55.2) and Nerlens Noel (54.5) right behind.
The Thunder are holding opponents to the sixth-fewest three-pointers per game in the league (10.1) as well as the sixth-fewest field goals per contest (39.4). Oklahoma City also holds the second-best defensive rating in the league (102.1) and ranks second in deflections per game (16.2).
Why Bet on LA Lakers?
The Lakers were again without LeBron James on Sunday but beat the visiting Kings 121-114 after losing the past two without James. LeBron’s teams had lost 13 straight games when he wasn’t in the lineup, dating to March 16, 2016, when the Cavaliers beat the Mavericks.
After missing a couple weeks with a bout with pneumonia, JaVale McGee returned to the starting lineup on Sunday and played 24 minutes, finishing with eight points, 12 rebounds, two steals and a block. McGee was on a minutes count.
Brandon Ingram was fantastic on Sunday, hitting 9-of-13 shots and a 3-pointer for 21 points, seven rebounds, nine assists, a steal, and two blocks. Ingram’s seven points in clutch time on Sunday matched the total he has had in clutch time all season. Coach Luke Walton was impressed by Ingram’s “complete” game and said, “when he has it (joy), it’s a lot of fun to watch. That’s where we’ve got to get to.”
Josh Hart hit 8-of-14 shots and three 3-pointers for a season-high 22 points, seven rebounds, three assists and two steals. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hit 9-of-21 shots, a season-high five 3-pointers and 3-of-3 free throws for a season-high 26 points. Los Angeles moved to 9-2 when recording 50 rebounds and dished out 30 assists for the 5th time this season, now 4-1 in such games.
Kyle Kuzma put together some of the best basketball of his career in the month of December, averaging 22.2 points (.480 FG%), 7.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists through 15 games in December 2018. Kuzma’s monthly averages in points (22.2) and assists (3.6) are the highest single-month marks of his career.
L.A. also remains without point guard Rajon Rondo. Both Rondo and James are expected to miss several more games.
Thunder vs Lakers NBA Betting Trends
- Under is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings
- Favorite is 4-1 ATS in the last 5 meetings
- Home team is 16-5 ATS in the last 21 meetings
- Over is 5-2 in the last 7 meetings in Los Angeles
- Thunder are 9-4 ATS in the last 13 meetings
- Thunder are 3-7 ATS in the last 10 meetings in Los Angeles
- Oklahoma City is 6-3 SU in its last 9 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Oklahoma City’s last 7 games on the road
- LA Lakers is 11-3 SU in its last 14 games at home
- The total has gone UNDER in 9 of LA Lakers’s last 11 games at home
Expert NBA Betting Prediction for Thunder vs Lakers
Back the Thunder.
