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The Los Angeles Lakers take on the Utah Jazz on August 3, 2020, as the NBA’s bubble tournament continues.
The Lakers are the top seed in the Western Conference with a record of 50-15. They are 5.5 games ahead of the second-seeded L.A. Clippers with six games left to play for both squads. Meanwhile, the Jazz are holding on to the 4th seed in the ultra-competitive Western Conference. Utah is just one-half game ahead of the 5th seeded Oklahoma City Thunder Bot these teams are coming off back to back losses and would want to bounce back on Monday night.
Los Angeles Lakers
The Lakers are looking to bounce back after a disappointing performance against the Toronto Raptors on Saturday night. Los Angeles lost to Toronto 107-92 after getting outscored by 13 points in the final quarter. The loss dropped Los Angeles to 50-15 on the season and they are 1-1 in their two games here in Orlando.
LeBron James led the Lakers with 20 points, 10 rebounds, and five assists but Anthony Davis was held to 14 points and 6 rebounds while taking only seven shots in 35 minutes of action. It was a far cry from his 34-point effort against the Clippers last July 30. Kyle Kuzma added 16 points but shot just 5-13 from the field while Danny Green went 0-7 from the floor including 0-6 from behind the three-point ara.
The Lakers shot a measly 35.4% from the floor against Toronto and were a horrible 10-40 from behind the three-point area. They also missed a total of nine free throws and only had a total of 17 assists in the game. Despite having the bigger frontline, the Lakers were outrebounded 44-32 in defensive boards.
Utah Jazz
The Jazz are also coming off a disappointing 94-110 loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder on Saturday night. Utah started slow and scored just 15 points in the first quarter while falling behind by 14 points after one. They never recovered as the Thunder erected a 24-point lead at the half and never looked back. Utah is now just one-half game ahead of Oklahoma City for 4th place in the Western Conference.
Five Utah players scored in double digits against the Thunder but no one score more than the 13 points that Donovan Mitchell put up. Spider Mitchell shot just 5-15 from the floor including 0-4 from behind the arc. Mike Conley had 12 points but he too shot poorly at 3-9 from the field while Rudy Gobert was held to 10 points and 7 boards. Jordan Clarkson, who led the team in their win against the Pelicans, shot just 4-17 from the floor and finished with 11 points.
The Jazz shot only 39.1% from the floor while allowing OKC to shoot 53.1% from the field. Utah shot 8-31 from behind the arc and despite having the 2019 Defensive Player of the Year, they were outrebounded 56-43. Utah also had only 17 assists in the game while their four blocks were just half of the Thunder’s total blocks production.
Who Wins?
The Lakers are 12-3 SU in their last 15 games played. Los Angeles is 3-2 SU in their last five games at home and are 9-1 SU in their last 10 games played against the Western Conference. The Jazz are 6-2 SU in their last eight games played. Utah is 5-1 SU in their last six games played on the road. Head to head, the Jazz are 6-4 SU in their last 10 games played against the Lakers. Los Angeles is also 1-8 SU in their last nine road games against Utah.
Both these teams are coming off disappointing losses. These teams shot poorly from the floor on Saturday night and were out-rebounded by their respective opponents. From the standpoint of the team standings, the Jazz have more to play for here as they are trying to hold off the Thunder for 4th place and are still trying to catch up with the Denver Nuggets who are in third place. The Lakers are comfortably up by 5.5 games on the Clippers with only six games left to play.
However, losing by 15 points wasn’t what Frank Vogel wanted from his team against Toronto. Sure, the Lakers are almost a lock to claim the #1 spot in the West. But this isn’t the kind of momentum that they want to carry to the postseason if they want to win the title. The Lakers are the better team between the two. I expect a bounce-back effort from the Purple and Gold.
Prediction: Los Angeles Lakers (-250)
Other Bets to Make
The Lakers are 6-4 ATS in their last 10 games played. Los Angeles is 3-2 ATS in their last five games played on the road and 7-2 ATS in their last nine games played against the Northwest Division. The Jazz are 3-7 ATS in their last 10 games played. Utah is 3-3 ATS in their last six games played on the road, and 1-4 ATS in their last five games played against the Western Division. Head to head, the Lakers are 5-1 ATS in their last six games played against the Jazz.
The Lakers have outscored the Jazz by an average of 12.67 points per game in their last three head to head meetings. Los Angeles leads their season series 2-0 and the Lakers have won the games by an aggregate winning margin of 34 points. The Lakers have won their last two meetings by at least nine points. Utah’s defense isn’t what it used to be. The Lakers have loaded offense that has yet to explode in the bubble.
Prediction: Los Angeles Lakers -6 (-110)
The total has gone under in eight out of the last 10 games played by the Lakers. Los Angeles has seen the total go under in four out of their last five games played on the road. The total has gone under in six out of the last 10 games played by the Jazz. The under is 5-2 in Utah’s last six games played on the road. Head to head, the total has gone under in four out of the last six meetings between these two teams.
These teams have combined to score an average of 211.2 points per game in their last 10 meetings and 206.67 points per contest in their most recent three encounters. Both these teams shot poorly in their last games played. And these teams have played to the under in 80% of their last 10 head to head meetings. I like Los Angeles and Utah to play to a low-scoring contest.
Prediction: Under 219 (-110)
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