Los Angeles Lakers vs Denver Nuggets Prediction, 5/18/2023 Preview and Pick
Game: Los Angeles Lakers vs Denver Nuggets
Date: Thursday, May 18, 2023
Location: Ball Arena in Denver, CO
TV: ESPN
Odds/Point Spread: Los Angeles (+5)
The Denver Nuggets will try to beat the Los Angeles Lakers at Ball Arena on Thursday in Game 2 of their series. Los Angeles opens this matchup as 5-point dogs. The total is 222.5.
The Lakers ended up losing by a score of 132-126 in Game 1. Concerning personal fouls, the Lakers walked away with 21 while the Nuggets accumulated 21 personal fouls. They knocked down 15 out of their 32 shots from distance. Denver ended up shooting 77.3% at the charity stripe by making 17 of their 22 shots. Additionally, Denver collected 47 rebounds (15 offensive, 32 defensive) and got 4 blocked shots. Denver doled out 29 assists and had 5 steals for this contest. In reference to defending, Los Angeles allowed the other team to go 54.9% from the floor on 50 out of 91 shooting. They also doled out 30 dimes in this matchup in addition to forcing the opposition into 11 turnovers and getting 6 steals. Pertaining to hauling in boards, they collected a total of 30 with 5 of them being of the offensive sort. From the free throw line, the Lakers knocked down 23 of their 26 attempts for a rate of 88.5%. Los Angeles finished the game having earned a 54.8% FG percentage (46 out of 84) and converted 11 of their 24 shots from 3-point land.
Anthony Davis is one player who was important in this matchup. He ended up scoring 40 points on 14 of 23 shooting. He was on the hardwood for 42 mins and also grabbed 10 rebounds. Davis finished the game shooting 60.9% from the floor and also totaled 3 assists.
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Los Angeles comes into this one with a win-loss mark of 43-39 on the season. They turn it over 14.1 times per game and as a team are committing 17.9 fouls every game. As a team, Los Angeles is snagging 45.7 boards per game and is sitting with 2,072 assists for the year, which has them ranked 15th in basketball in terms of passing the ball. The Lakers are connecting on 34.6% on shots from downtown (885 of 2,558) and 77.5% from the free throw line. They have an average of 117.2 points per contest (6th in the league) while connecting on 48.2% from the field.
On the defensive end, the Lakers are able to force 12.6 turnovers per contest while drawing 21.5 personal fouls. They are giving up 34.4% from 3-point land and they rank 20th in basketball in points per game from their opponents (116.6). The Lakers defensively are allowing a FG percentage of 46.9% (3,607 of 7,698) and they surrender 44.9 boards per game as a basketball team. They are 15th in the NBA in allowing assists to the opposition with 2,104 conceded on the season.
In Game 1, the Nuggets earned 32 defensive rebounds and 15 offensive rebounds totaling 47 for the game. They gave up possession of the ball 11 times, while getting 5 steals for this contest. The Lakers committed 21 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Nuggets to the free throw line for a total of 22 attempts. They were able to convert 17 of those for a percentage of 77.3%. Regarding shots from beyond the arc, Denver converted 15 of 32 attempts (46.9%). When the final whistle blew, the Nuggets ended up going 50 for 91 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 54.9%. The Nuggets permitted the Lakers to convert 46 out of 84 tries from the floor which gave them a percentage of 54.8% for the contest. They finished the game shooting 45.8% from three-point range by shooting 11 out of 24 and ended up shooting 23 out of 26 from the free throw line (88.5%). When discussing attacking the glass, Denver permitted Los Angeles to get 30 overall (5 on the offensive glass).
Nikola Jokic was important for the Nuggets for the matchup. He made 12 of 17 in this game giving him a field goal percentage of 70.6%, and had 21 rebounds. Jokic earned 34 points in his 42 mins on the hardwood and totaled 14 dimes in this matchup.
Denver has a mark of 53-29 for the season. The Nuggets are committing 18.6 personal fouls per contest while shooting 75.1% from the charity stripe. They are dishing out assists 28.9 times per contest (2nd in the league) and they are giving up possession 14.5 times per game. Denver has scored 9,495 points on the year (115.8 per game) and they pull in 43.0 boards per game. When it comes to offense, the Nuggets are hitting on 50.4% from the floor, which has them ranked 1st in the NBA.
The Denver defense allows 34.4% on shots from beyond the arc (933 of 2,711) and their opponents are making 77.5% of their shots from the free throw line. They give up 25.7 dimes and 40.8 rebounds every game, which has them ranked 16th and 1st in the NBA. The Nuggets defensively are ranked 8th in the NBA in points per game surrendered with 112.5. They are able to force 13.5 turnovers on a nightly basis and allow teams to shoot 47.8% from the field (20th in the league).
Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?
Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Los Angeles (+5)
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Additional Resources:
Denver Nuggets - Twitter
Los Angeles Lakers - Twitter