The Oklahoma City Thunder and Los Angeles Lakers have already met twice this season. The Thunder have dominated, winning by 35 here at the Staples Center just before Christmas and by 40 at home four days prior. We'll have to see if the Lakers have learned their lessons heading into the new year about how to deal with Kevin Durant and the gang.
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SCHEDULING
This is going to be the end of a really tough stretch for the Lakers. They had to play against Golden State on Tuesday and will take on Sacramento on Thursday night on the road before heading back to Los Angeles for this duel with the Thunder. That's two successive games against teams which love to run up and down the court, and that could be bad news late in this game if fatigue sets in.
Oklahoma City is beginning a three-game road trip on Friday night, but it has Thursday to prepare after blowing out Memphis 112-94 at home on Wednesday.
KEY MATCHUP
Interior defense has been a real problem for the Lakers all season long. Teams are continually attacking the basket against LA and its poor defenders, and with Russell Westbrook commanding the ball at the top of the key a ton, there isn't a man one-on-one who is going to be able to slow him down.
Oklahoma City's starters shot 31-of-45 from inside the arc in the most recent meeting and 18-of-36 in the first clash. In both games, all five of the starters were at least +12 when in the game, and none of them played more than 30 minutes because both games were blowouts.
Live bettors need to watch that LA defense carefully. The Thunder aren't going to shoot threes all day long, but they drive to the hoop and create easy shot attempts like few other teams in the league. If the Lakers aren't able to handle that on the inside with Roy Hibbert, Larry Nance Jr., Brandon Bass and Julius Randle, they're going to be in a heck of a lot of trouble once again.
KEY STATS & TRENDS
The Lakers are also an awful rebounding team. They're undersized, and having Kobe Bryant on the court really kills any ability to get out and run. It isn't an accident that LA has won three of its last four games. In two of those three, Bryant sat out with a shoulder problem.
It's tough to say that you should be live betting on the Lakers when Bryant isn't on the court, but for our money, he's making this team significantly worse when he's out there. Letting Randle and D'Angelo Russell try to evolve as young players would clearly be the better course of action for the men in purple and gold.
Let's not forget that Oklahoma City has won five of its last six games and has scored at least 104 in each of those duels. This offense averages 108.6 points per game, and live bettors should be shocked if the Thunder don't ultimately get to at least 110, if not at least 120 in this one against one of the worst defensive teams in the NBA.
Access live betting from your mobile device or tablet at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker's live betting platform. Real-time spreads, totals, props and moneylines are all available by clicking here, so start betting with BookMaker right now! Bet on the NBA today as the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Los Angeles Lakers square off Friday, January 8, 2016 at 10:30 p.m. ET at the Staples Center. The matchup will be televised nationally on ESPN.
