Lakers vs. Thunder Team Breakdowns
The Oklahoma City Thunder came out and made a statement with a 119-90 win over the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1, but that doesn't matter if they aren't able to come back and win Game 2 on Wednesday. This is a crucial game for both teams. Tip-off for Game 2 is scheduled for 9:30 EST and will be televised nationally on TNT.
It looks as if oddsmakers are expecting a much closer final score in Game 2. Despite the incontrovertible fact that the Thunder covered the spread by 21.5-points in Game 1, Oklahoma City is once again favored b 7.5-points over the Lakers. Want to stay up to do date on the series, you can read more about these teams at Betfirms.
Los Angeles
The Lakers seemed like they were still recovering from that difficult first round series against the Denver Nuggets. Los Angeles came out strong in the first quarter, but from the second quarter on they looked tired. As a result, they ended up geting crushed in the second half.
Kobe Bryant wound up with 20 points, but it wasn't a very good game for him. He was just 7 of 18 from the field and had just two assists and 3 rebounds. Pau Gasol wasn't much of a factor again in the playoffs. He had just 10 points and 7 rebounds in 30 minutes. Andrew Bynum was the only player I was truly impressed by. Bynum posted a strong double-double with 20 points and 14 rebounds.
Metta World Peace came out and hit a couple shots early in the first quarter, but after that he was a non-factor. If the Lakers are going to bounce back and at least make it respectable in Game 2, World Peace has to play better and they need more than only two points out of Ramon Sessions.
Defensively the Lakers have to do a better job on keeping the Thunder from penetrating into the lane and kicking out for wide-open shots. Don't be shocked if Bryant doesn't come out and guard Russell Westbrook from the beginning of the game. The only problem with that, if Bryant is forced to guard Westbrook, it takes away from what he can give the Lakers offensively.
Oklahoma City
After a long lay off between series, there was some concern that this team would come out flag. It did not take long for Oklahoma City to find their rhythm, as they shot 53% from the field and 41% from the 3-point line. When this team comes out and shoots the ball like they did on Monday, they're extremely difficult to beat.
Westbrook had a game-high 27 points, but there was more to his performance than just his scoring. He had 7 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 steals. Kevin Durant also contributed in multiple areas, he had 25 points, eight rebounds, and 4 assists. James Harden came off the bench to add 17 points in just 24 minutes. While nobody else reached double-digits, they had nine other players help out offensively.
Defensively I believe the Thunder had a strong game plan in Game 1. Thabo Sefolosha and Harden really made Bryant work for everything he got offensively. They also did an excellent job of keeping Gasol from playing a big role. Although Even though Bynum put up solid numbers, a lot of people overlook the fact that they are not double-teaming him each time he touches the ball. That makes it that much tougher for the Lakers role players to contribute.
It's hard to not like Oklahoma City's chances of winning Game 2. The Thunder are 3-1 against Los Angeles this year and all 3 of their wins have come by more than 10-points. The sole game they loss, came in LA when they blew a massive lead after World Peace delivered that vicious elbow to Harden.
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