Its farcical All-Star Game is done (mercifully), and the second half of the NBA season is underway. A couple of teams playing better in recent weeks collide in San Francisco Thursday night, the Los Angeles Lakers visiting the Golden State Warriors.
LA didn’t need a break, winning its last three and six-of-seven, climbing to 30-26 and ninth place (as of this Wednesday writing) in the Western Conference.
Golden State was extremely inconsistent in the first half of its season, though the Warriors also hit the break 6-1 in their last seven. Sitting at 27-26, the team is 10th in the conference.
Lines aren’t available, but once posted, please refer to NBA odds.
If you’re a fan/believer, try the Lakers at 35-1 (+3500) to win the title, or the Warriors at 40-1 (+4000), as per NBA championship odds.
Lakers vs. Warriors Odds By Betus
| Team | SP/RL | TOTAL | ML | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lakers | +6 ( -110 ) | 242 ( -110 ) | +190 |  |
| Warriors | -6 ( -110 ) | 242 ( -110 ) | -235 | |
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Climbing the Standings
The Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors were expected to be higher in the standings at this point in the season. That hasn’t been the case, but as mentioned, they are trending in the right direction at the beginning of the second half.
Sixth place is the goal, as that would keep the Lakers, Warriors, or any team out of the play-in tournament. The New Orleans Pelicans currently possess that position, LA trailing by 3½ games, a game-and-a-half ahead of the Warriors.
Lakers’ Usual Suspects
Discussing the Los Angeles Lakers begins with Anthony Davis (24.9 points per game, 12.2 rebounds/game) and LeBron James (24.8 points, 7.2 rebounds, 7.8 assists/game). Both are efficient, shooting at better than a 50-percent clip.
LA as a team is at 49½ percent, fourth in the league.
James, it should be noted, has been working around an injured ankle, so make sure to check his status ahead of Thursday’s game.
D’Angelo Russell (17.5 points/game), turning 28 Friday, leads a supporting cast that includes Austin Reaves (15.8 points/game) and Rui Hachimura (12.2 points/game). Hachimura had a career-high 36 points against the Utah Jazz before the All-Star “intermission”.
Better By Bay
Say this much about the Golden State Warriors…they’re not boring. In the first half of the season which included an elongated suspension to Draymond Green, major minutes to different players and a once-prolific scorer now coming off the bench, there have been many storylines with this former dynasty.
Then, there’s Steph Curry (28 points per game, sixth in the NBA). He may be 35 years of age, but few, if any, around the league are as “treacherous “ when it counts.
The aforementioned newbie leading the second unit is Klay Thompson (17 points/game), who torched the Utah Jazz to the tune of 35 points in his first reserve role since 2012. If Thompson, a free-agent-to-be who’s been off the floor more than once in crunch time this season, regains some of that lethal touch, then the Warriors could be a tough out.
Jonathan Kuminga (15½ points/game) and Andrew Wiggins (12½ points/game) have been contributing, while the minding-his-manners Draymond Green (9.7 points, 6.7 rebounds, 6.2 assists/game) had a season-high 23 points in that same “Thompson game” against the Jazz.
Take the Warriors
LA was a 145-144 winner in double overtime on the road in the team’s only meeting of the season, led by a LeBron James triple-double (36 points, 20 rebounds, 12 assists). Steph Curry had 46 points in the losing effort.
As was mentioned, James now has ankle issues, which limited his participation in what used to be the All-Star Game.
It’s that uncertainty, along with what may be Klay Thompson’s emergence as a second-unit standout, leading us to the home side in this one.
Take the Golden State Warriors as a perceived few-points home favorite against the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday night.
