The Los Angeles Lakers get their first look at Andre Drummond in purple and gold on Wednesday night. However, Drummond’s first game with the Lakers isn’t projected to be a walk in the park. The Lakers welcome one of the best teams in the NBA and the two-time reigning MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Bucks, despite their pedigree, have struggled as of late, losing their last three games. Their last loss was their worst one of the stretch, a 24-point loss to a Clippers team playing without Paul George. But with all of that being understood, the Bucks are still a much deeper team than what the Lakers currently are.
The lines, courtesy of BetMGM
- Point spread: Bucks -9
- Money line: Lakers +310 / Bucks -400
- Over-under: 221.5
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Advice and prediction
The Lakers should be feeling good after their defense helped them scrape out two wins they needed to stay in front of Denver and Portland in the Western Conference standings. Montrezl Harrell’s consistent scoring has also been key to the success of the Lakers, which is something they will need again on Wednesday.
But even if Harrell has a good game and the Lakers supporting cast gets their 3-pointers to go, they’re going to have a difficult time keeping pace with the Bucks. While they are down two key players in Bobby Portis and PJ Tucker, the Bucks still have their key frontline players. They’ve been in a bad way over the past week and Drummond’s debut likely has created more momentum for the Lakers to make this interesting. I don’t see it against the Bucks, who can still deliver a blowout, even coming off a losing streak.
Prediction: Bucks 132, Lakers 110
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