Article courtesy OddsShark (@OddsShark)
The Los Angeles Lakers have rolled through the first three rounds of the postseason with a 12-3 straight-up and 9-5-1 against-the-spread record. They tip off the NBA Finals against the Miami Heat on Wednesday night in Orlando.
Los Angeles is a 4.5-point favorite on the NBA odds for Game 1 at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. The Heat are 0-4 SU and 2-2 ATS in their last four games against the Lakers.
Heat vs Lakers | OddsShark Matchup Report
LeBron James looked like a man that had watched the Denver Nuggets erase two straight 3-1 series deficits this postseason last Saturday. James ensured that the same result would not occur against his Lakers, leading the way with 38 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists in a 117-107 Game 5 victory. Anthony Davis added 27 points in the win and the defense held Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray to only 39 combined points.
The Lakers are 8-1 SU and 6-2-1 ATS over their last nine games per the OddsShark NBA Database.
Miami opened the 2020 postseason with a perfect 7-0 SU and ATS record, sweeping the Indiana Pacers and jumping out to a 3-0 lead over the heavily favored Milwaukee Bucks. The Heat finished off Milwaukee in five games before going 4-2 SU and ATS against the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals, winning all four games as betting underdogs.
This will be the deepest team the Lakers have faced this postseason as the Heat have four legitimate scoring threats in Goran Dragic, Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo and Tyler Herro.
Wednesday night’s total is set at 217.5 points at sports betting sites. The OVER is 5-1 in Miami’s last six games.
Los Angeles is averaging 113.9 points per game this postseason to Miami’s 112.2 per game and is allowing 106.5 points per game to Miami’s 107.2 per game. Both teams have matching 12-3 SU records.
Not much has separated the Heat and the Lakers on paper this postseason, but the NBA Finals will be decided on the court, not on paper. James and Davis are four wins away from completing their mission of bringing the NBA championship back to Los Angeles, and they’ll look to earn one of those wins on Wednesday.
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