The Philadelphia 76ers are in Los Angeles to take on the Lakers for the second game of their four game west coast road trip. The trip didn’t start off as they had hoped as they lost to the Suns on Wednesday night, 115-102. The Lakers are at home and well rested, having last played on Monday when they blew out the visiting Atlanta Hawks, 136-105.
76ers vs Lakers game information
Who: Philadelphia 76ers (38-31) at Los Angeles Lakers (37-32)
When: 10:30 pm EST
Where: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles CA
Watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, NBA League Pass, Spectrum
76ers vs Lakers betting information
Spread: 76ers +7 | Lakers -7
Moneyline: 76ers +240 | Lakers -298
Total: Over/Under 225
Latest on the Sixers
As a team, the 76ers shot 43.2% from the floor and just 35.1% on their three-point attempts in the loss to Phoenix. Combine that with some leaky defense, allowing the Suns to shoot 50% from the floor and an insane 48.7% on their threes, and it was a recipe for disaster. They’ll be hoping for a better showing against the Lakers.
They’ll need more from Tyrese Maxey tonight. He was on fire in the month of March, right up until the Suns ran at him all night where he shot just 3-13 from the field and 0-4 on his three point attempts. If the 76ers are going to beat the Lakers, Maxey is going to have to regain the form that had him scoring 30 points in three straight games. If you know anything about the young guard it’s that he doesn’t let performances like that sit with him and he’ll come out firing again, hoping to get the Sixers back in the win column.
What Head Coach Nick Nurse needs to figure out before tipoff is why none of his starters except Kelly Oubre Jr. scored in double figures against the Suns. Meanwhile, KJ Martin, Ricky Council IV, Cam Payne, and Jeff Dowtin all reached double figures in scoring.
Payne was impressive shooting 5-10 from the field and quickly giving the team some much needed offense and then he was gone. With the starters not playing well, the team was better served with its four standout reserves taking minutes. Nurse has to do a better job of riding the hot hand, especially this late in the season,
Latest on the Lakers
The Lakers are all over the place this season. In a stretch that has seen them beat the Hawks, Bucks, Timberwolves, and Thunder, they’ve also lost games to the Kings, Warriors, and Nuggets. Getting big wins over some of the top teams in the leagues is huge, but faltering against some of the others is not the “Laker way”.
A team that features LeBron James and Anthony Davis shouldn’t have the problems that the Lakers do, yet they’re sitting 9th in the Western Conference standings, three whole games behind the 8th seeded Kings. James, Davis, and D’Angelo Russell combined for 74 points, 26 rebounds, and 26 assists in their blowout of the Hawks but that’s not normally the case for this team.
While James continues to astound the league with his play in his 21st season, he can’t be counted on to will his teams to the NBA finals as he did a few years back. At 39 years old, James is still a great player who’s averaging 25.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 8.1 assists on the season, while still playing 35 minutes per game. He’s sharing the floor with Davis, Russell, Rui Hachimora, and Austin Reaves, who are all having very good years but the team isn’t able to overcome their flaws. This season, as much as he may want it to, likely won’t finish with James holding a trophy over his head.
What to watch for tonight
The Sixers must have a comeback game against the Lakers where they shoot well, play defense better than they did in Phoenix, and help get Tyrese Maxey in better spots to shoot. They’re playing a Lakers team that is giving up 115.5 points per game and although Davis and James can lead the team defensively, the Lakers can give up quite a lot of points. That’s all good news for people like Cam Payne who’s been playing well in this make-shift core without Joel Embiid.
The Sixers should look to get some of the younger, more athletic players on the floor against the Lakers. Ricky Council IV and KJ Martin should both see extended minutes and that means some definite highlight dunks. Coach Nick Nurse will have his work cut out for him and needs to figure out the rotation a bit better than against the Suns if they’re going to keep the Lakers on their heels.
Prediction
Sixers 114 – Lakers 121
AP Photo/Rick Scuteri
