The Los Angeles Lakers (0-1) will have another chance to earn their first win of the season on Friday night, but this time against the Phoenix Suns (0-1). It’ll be a rematch of the first round of the playoffs last year, where the Suns knocked the Lakers out with a 4-2 series win. Los Angeles fell to the Golden State Warriors on opening night and Phoenix dropped its season-opener against the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday.
The Lakers are going to need their role players to assist LeBron James and Anthony Davis, who combined for 67 points on Tuesday. Russell Westbrook’s woes continued as he’s still trying to fit into an offense that’s centered around him and two of the top scorers in the NBA. The defense desperately needs to improve, too, considering that Golden State’s ball movement is what led to the Warriors coming back from a 10-point deficit late in the second half.
The purple and gold are still working through rotations to figure out who should be on the court together and when, which is understandable, but time is ticking. The Suns are the lone team to knock LeBron out of the first-round of the playoffs, and you know that’s something that he hasn’t forgotten. The 19-year veteran led the Lakers with 34 points in the first game of the regular season, so expect to him somehow play with an even higher intensity against Phoenix.
If you do decide to bet on tonight’s Lakers-Suns game, Lake Show Life is here to assist you.
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Suns odds, spread and over/under
According to WynnBET, the Los Angeles Lakers are the one-point favorites. Los Angeles and Phoenix both enter the matchup with a -110 moneyline. The over/under for the game is set at 223.5 points.
The odds are in favor of the Lakers sending Chris Paul and the Suns out of California with a loss. However, Los Angeles will again have its hands full at the start of the season. It’ll all come down to the five players on the floor being able to successfully coexist as well as if the Lakers can continue to get quality minutes from players like Kent Bazemore, and even Avery Bradley.
If Westbrook can find a way to support James and Davis, Los Angeles will have a solid shot at avenging their early exit out of the postseason last year.
Lakers vs. Suns prediction:
If I were to bet on the game, I’d say that the purple and gold are going to fall to 0-2 on the season. LeBron and AD had incredible performances on opening night, yet the Lakers still lost by seven points. The lineup clearly needs work and things won’t automatically be more fluid in time for tonight’s game. The name of the game is patience, but time is also of the essence.
I’m taking Phoenix +1 and over 223.5 points with a final score prediction of Suns 123, Lakers 113.
What channel is the Lakers game on?
The Lakers-Suns game will be broadcast on ESPN. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. PST.
Lakers next game and schedule:
The Lakers will host the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday, Oct. 24 at 6:30 p.m. PST.