NBA Playoff Odds: Denver Nuggets vs. Los Angeles Lakers Game 2

Carmelo Anthony averaged under 15 points per game against the Lakers during the regular season, but he proved in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals that he is going to be a force to be reckoned with.  Anthony scored 39 point, but the performance was not good enough to steal a win on the road as he was outdone by Kobe Bryant’s 40 points in a 103-105 loss. Game 2 tips Thursday night at 9:00 pm EST at the Staples Center and can be seen on ESPN. NBA odds makers expect Los Angeles to go up 2-0, listing the Lakers as 5-point favorites with the total set at 210.5.

Cancel all your Memorial Day weekend plans because if Game 1 is any indication of what this series is going to be like, you’re not going to want to miss even a minute of action. The Denver Nuggets showed no signs of rust following a lengthy layoff, jumping on the Lakers right out of the gate with an early double digit lead. Los Angeles would regain the lead at the half on Derek Fisher’s three pointer, but Denver would once again control most of the second half action. When it was all said and done, the Lakers would end the game on top as Kobe Bryant was too much for the Nuggets to handle down the stretch, scoring 15 points in the finals 6:48, including six clutch free throws in the final 30 seconds to seal the deal. The win improved the Lakers to 7-1 at home in the playoffs and a perfect 8-0 this postseason when scoring 100 points or more. Heading into the series it appeared that Denver’s bench had the edge, the Lakers’ bench outscored the Nuggets’ bench by 11 points in Game 1. If you like LA to take a 2-0 lead and cover the number in the process, bet the Lakers at -5 at BetUS and receive up to 145 percent in sign up bonuses.

With their Game 1 defeat, the Denver Nuggets fell to 2-3 on the road in the postseason and 6-12 in their last 18 road contests dating back to the regular season. While it figures to be no easy task stealing a win against a team that is now 43-6 at home on the season, that is precisely what the Nuggets must do to win this series. While blowing a seven-point fourth quarter lead in Game 1 has to be frustrating, the Nuggets cannot afford to dwell on it. The Nuggets have only two wins in LA against 25 losses since 1996 so they must bring their A-game to the table once again. The Nuggets discovered in Game 1 that LA has no answer for Carmelo Anthony. Kobe Bryant did a solid job of guarding Melo at times, but ultimately the Lakers want to use him on Melo as little as possible to keep Bryant out of foul trouble and to keep him fresher on the offensive end. Trevor Ariza and Luke Walton were not very effective in guarding Anthony so I expect him to have a big series. But as we saw in Game 1, Melo can’t do it alone. The key for the Nuggets in this series will be the play of sixth man spark plug J.R. Smith. He had a very quite Game 1, just 8 points on 2 of 7 shooting. He has been Denver’s No. 3 scoring option after Chauncey Billups and Anthony in these playoffs and they are going to need his points if they hope to come out on top in this series. If you like Denver to bounce back in Game 2, bet the Nuggets at +5 at BetUS.

Looking for better NBA betting odds? Check out the lines at some of Jimmy’s favorite sportsbooks daily via his live lines page, and don’t forget to check his NBA picks each day as well.

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