NBA: Oklahoma City Thunder VS Los Angeles Lakers Pick and Predictions 02/07/2023

Game: 7:30 PM ET,  Tuesday, February 7th, 2023

Venue:  Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California

TV:  TNT

Thunder: 25-28, 12th place Western Conference

Lakers: 25-29, 13th place Western Conference

BetMGM:  Point Spread: Lakers -6.5, O/U 239.5

PointsBet: Point Spread: Lakers -6.5, O/U 239.5

Fanduel: Point Spread: Lakers -6.5, O/U 239

Thunder: PG Shai Gilgeous Alexander, SG Josh Giddey, SF Aaron Wiggins, PF Jalen Williams, C Mike Muscala

Lakers: PG Dennis Shroder, SG Patrick Beverley, SF LeBron James, PF Rui Hachimura, C Anthony Davis

A Western Conference matchup between virtually tied 12th and 13th place teams… so why would we watch?... HISTORY… possibly.  LeBron James is 36 points away from breaking Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s all-time scoring record.  Anyone who loves basketball… and especially NBA basketball should watch this one!  It is the first game on the TNT docket and it is the biggest of the year.  If LeBron does not get 36 points tonight?.. He will certainly break it next game against the Milwaukee Bucks.  Outside of the possible all-time record there are real implications from this game.  Both the Thunder and the Lakers have 25 wins.. The Lakers have 1 more loss… so they are near tied!  If the Lakers win they move up if the thunder win they solidify the separation. We all know LeBron.. He wants to win more than breaking a record on a Tuesday night in the mid-season of the NBA.  BTW if you love Michael Jordan… good… but you will want to watch tonight to see how the real GOAT handles it all.  The great betting opportunity has nothing to do with the record.. And everything to do with who wins and by how much?

The Oklahoma City Thunder have won 5 of their last 10 games.  This team was thought to only be worried about the Draft Lottery this year, but they have the backcourt of the future on the court.  They are capable of winning.  They lost their last game against the Golden State Warriors 141-114. Ouch, it was a big loss ATS. In the loss they watched as Warriors SG Klay Thompson dropped 42 points on 12 of 16 3-pointers!! Klay will be a Hall of Famer. The Thunder got 20 points from SG Shai Gilgeous Alexander but pulled the plug early as they fell far behind. Shai only played 29 minutes,,, PG Josh Giddey hit 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 8 assists in just 28 minutes.  They realized the game was lost and waved the white towel early.  Klay got a veteran player moment by destroying the very competitive nature of the game.

The Los Angeles Lakers have won 5 of their last 10 games.  They went 5-5 ATS during that stretch.  They lost their last game to the New Orleans Pelicans and it was a loss ATS (as predicted here).  The Lakers are competitive since Antony Davis has returned and Rui Hachimura has joined the fold.. It is just all new since… well they weren’t there before.  They lost their last game to the Pelicans 131-126.  They got 34 points from C Anthony Davis and 27 points from LeBron James.  That is a working formula of the game's greats.. But they'll need Rui to play more than 19 minutes and get more than 8 points. The Lakers guards are beginning to look like wasted space.. Even when Dennis Shroder gets 7 points and 10 assists… It is not the same as if a defensive minded point guard got that while stopping someone.  

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Our prediction for Tuesday, February 7th is….  Lakers 118 - Thunder 116

Easy Money!  The Lakers are favored by too much.  Record or no record on the line… Exactly which Laker’s guards will be able to stop Shai and Josh?... Bet on the Thunder and out those sweet overblown points in your pocket!!

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Thunder: PG Josh Giddey. Josh is a real deal, big guard, stat stuffer.  Let me say that again.  He will have double digit points, rebounds, and assists…. If he misses that triple double it’s because he found a wrinkle where he got more of one of those stats and kept exploiting it.  The league will have to deal with kid for many more seasons all the while knowing that the guy next to him (SG Shai Gilgeous Alexander) is the one they should be focused on!  Good days ahead for the Thunder.

Lakers: PF/SF/PG LeBron James.  LeBron is the Goat.  It is that simple.  He may break Kareem Abdul Jabbar’s all-time scoring record in this game… though if he falls 6 points short?... That sets us all up to watch a Thursday Night game!  LeBron is far from finished as the GOAT.. his body says he can play 5 more seasons… and then we will have to check back.  He says he wants to stay long enough to play with his son Bronny… That is two seasons away if all goes well.  LeBron could end his career with a scoring record that will never be broken in my lifetime… If you think Luka in Dallas may break it?... You haven’t seen his body and projected another 15 years of play+.  

Thunder: Mark “who am I?” Daigneault

Lakers: Darvin “when does the winning start?” Ham