Denver Nuggets vs Los Angeles Lakers Prediction, 5/3/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Denver Nuggets vs Los Angeles Lakers

Date: Monday, May 3, 2021

Location: STAPLES Center in Los Angeles, CA

TV: ESPN

STAPLES Center is the site where and the Los Angeles Lakers (36-26) will play the Denver Nuggets (42-21) on Monday.

The Denver Nuggets played the Toronto Raptors and walked away with a win by a score of 121-111 in their last game. Denver finished with a 47.8% FG percentage (44 of 92) and made 12 of their 35 3-point attempts. When they shot from the free throw line, the Nuggets buried 21 of their 26 shots for a rate of 80.8%. Regarding pulling down rebounds, they collected 47 with 14 of them being of the offensive variety. They also distributed 22 assists in this matchup while forcing 15 turnovers and having 6 steals. Regarding defending, Denver let their opponent shoot 48.2% from the field on 40 out of 83 shooting. Toronto recorded 27 dimes and had 11 steals for this contest. On top of that, Toronto totaled 35 boards (7 offensive, 28 defensive) and earned 7 blocks. Toronto shot 83.3% from the charity stripe by making 15 of 18 attempts. They made 16 of 32 shots from distance.

Michael Porter Jr. is one guy who was a factor in the matchup. He ended up finishing with 23 points on 8 of 19 shooting. He saw the court for 35:23 mins and snagged 7 rebounds. Porter finished the game at 42.1% from the floor and also dished out 1 assist. Another guy that was a major factor in this matchup for the Nuggets was Nikola Jokic. He snagged 11 rebounds in his 28:26 min on the basketball court. He finished the contest at 61.5% from the floor for this contest by connecting on 8-of-13 (19 points). When all was said and done, Jokic tallied 2 assists.

Denver comes into this matchup with a mark of 42-21 so far this season. They turn it over 13.6 times per game and as a unit they commit 18.8 personal fouls every game. As a team, Denver is collecting 44.5 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 1,705 assists on the year, which is 2nd in the NBA in terms of passing. The Nuggets are hitting 38.0% on shots from distance (818 of 2,150) and 79.5% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 115.6 points per outing (4th in basketball) while going 48.8% from the field. On the defensive end of the court, the Nuggets are forcing their opponents into 14.1 turnovers per contest and they draw 19.2 fouls. They currently rank 28th in the league in giving up assists to their opponents with 1,658 relinquished so far this season. The Nuggets defense is giving up a field goal percentage of 47.0% (888 of 1,209) and they concede 41.0 rebounds per game as a team. They give up 36.1% on 3-point attempts and they are 9th in the NBA in PPG allowed (110.2).

When they last stepped on the court, the Los Angeles Lakers went home defeated by a final of 116-107 when they faced the Washington Wizards. The Lakers pulled down 28 defensive rebounds and 13 offensive boards totaling 41 for the matchup. They turned it over 10 times, while recording 10 steals in this matchup. The Wizards earned 20 fouls in the matchup which took the Lakers to the free throw line for a total of 21 tries. They were able to knock down 13 of those for a rate of 61.9%. When it comes to shooting from 3-point land, Los Angeles converted 10 of their 34 tries (29.4%). Overall, the Lakers ended up shooting 42 out of 96 from the field which gave them a rate of 43.8%. The Lakers allowed the Wizards to make 47 of their 90 attempts from the field which left them shooting 52.2% for the game. They wrapped up this game 33.3% from distance by shooting 6 out of 18 and ended up shooting 16 out of 21 at the free throw line (76.2%). In regard to how they attacked the glass, Los Angeles allowed Washington to pull down 50 overall (10 offensive).

Anthony Davis ended up being a factor for the Lakers for the contest. He converted 10 of 20 in this contest for a rate of 50.0%, and tallied 5 rebounds. Davis tallied 26 points in his 31:04 minutes on the court and accumulated 2 assists in the game. An additional guy who was a determining factor for Los Angeles was Andre Drummond. He finished this one with 2 dimes in his 20:29 minutes played, and he put in 8 out of 12 from the floor. Drummond walked away from this one going 66.7% from the field while also earning 17 points and 11 total rebounds.

Los Angeles has a mark of 36-26 so far this year. The Lakers are committing 19.1 fouls per game and they go 74.4% from the charity stripe. They are getting an assist 24.6 times per contest (16th in the league) and they turn it over 15.3 times per contest. Los Angeles has scored 6,799 pts this year (109.7 per game) and they pull in 44.4 boards per contest. On the offensive side of the ball, the Lakers are shooting 47.3% from the field, which has them ranked 10th in the NBA. The Lakers on the defensive end are ranked 2nd in the NBA in points allowed per game with 106.4. They have conceded 24.6 assists and 42.1 boards every game, ranking them 15th and 5th in the league. The Los Angeles defense gives up 35.1% on 3-point shots (703 of 2,004) and their opposition makes 77.1% of their foul shots. They are able to force 15.3 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 45.9% from the field (9th in the league).

So what is Tonights Parlay prediction?

Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take Los Angeles

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