Sunday Clash Between Los Angeles Lakers And Oklahoma City Thunder
On Sunday April 10, the Los Angeles Lakers will battle against the Oklahoma City Thunder as both finish out their seasons in preparation for the NBA Playoffs. Kendrick Perkins has already been talking trash in regards to Lakers big man, Pau Gasol and their coach Phil Jackson, who is the new addition for the Thunder.
In basketball betting Odds the Lakers are the favorite to win the NBA Championship this season at 9-2 whereas basketball picks have the Thunder at 15-1.
Perkins did not show Gasol much respect as he called him “soft” as well as he also called Jackson “arrogant.” When the two take the floor on Sunday it will be an interesting matchup. With the improved play of Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom off the bench, the Lakers have been a dominant team on the boards.
Even though Kobe Bryant has suffered his usual assortment of minor injuries, he has staved off major injuries this season. Bryant has continued to be the team leader and scoring leader of the Lakers in spite of his battle with the injury bug. Bryant is always known for turning it up a notch in the NBA Playoffs as he is averaging a little more than 25 points per game.
In the NBA Kevin Durant is still one of the best players who is flying under the radar in Oklahoma City. In the first round of the NBA Playoffs last year the Thunder gave the Lakers all they could handle as well as with the Lakers this year their acquisition of Perkins could lead them to a later NBA Playoffs battle.
This Sunday’s game will lay the groundwork for the 2011 NBA Playoffs as the Thunder are stronger this year and more seasoned.
Sunday Clash Between Los Angeles Lakers And New York Knicks
For the first time throughout the 2010-2011 seasons, the New York Knicks will travel to the Staples Center to take on the Los Angeles Lakers, on Sunday.
For this matchup NBA Odds have not yet been posted.
The Lakers clearly have the edge over the Knicks in all categories, by looking at their past history and recent performances. Though there is no need to count out the Knicks just yet.
At this point in the season the truth is that last year’s NBA championships are underachieving. Behind Utah, Dallas, and San Antonio, the Lakers start off 2011 ranked fourth in the Western Conference. the Lakers suffered a surprising 104-85 loss to Memphis, who has less than a 50 percent winning record this season by looking at the past week. To win the game on Sunday evening, these are some of the points that may give the Knicks plenty of hope. The championship squad that includes Kobe Bryant, Derek Fisher, Lamar Odom, and Ron Artest are dangerous on any given day and can recover quickly from the worst losses, for sure.
With two consecutive wins the Knicks got off to a positive start in 2011. The Knicks beat the Spurs, who have the best record in the league indeed. While Stoudemire and Felton each scored 28 points, in the 128-115 win over San Antonio, New York’s Wilson Chandler had 31 points. The Knicks are more than ready to face the Lakers without any intimidation, after such a hot performance. Anything can happen considering the fact that they haven’t faced each other this season as recent momentum can be a deciding factor on Sunday’s game.
Friday Clash Between Los Angeles Lakers And Chicago Bulls
On Friday, in a battle of NBA rivals the Los Angeles Lakers will travel to Chicago to lock horn with the Chicago Bulls.
For this matchup NBA Odds have not yet been posted.
This road trip will be vital for the Lakers as they have gone through a bit of a drought after their fast start. Leading by a hot shooting Shannon Brown, the Lakers defeated the Bulls in Los Angeles just before Thanksgiving 98-91 and in the victory Brown nailed five three pointers.
This season after a four game losing streak, the Los Angeles Lakers have dropped six games. In spite of losing a step over the last few years Kobe Bryant is still the heart and soul of this team. For each game, Bryant is averaging over 26 points. “Kobe runs the offense on the floor and Phil Jackson runs the triangle defense,” Ron Artest told Dan Patrick on his show Monday.
As the teams point guard Derrick Rose is leading the Chicago Bulls. Rose is the general on the floor for Chicago as he is averaging just less than 25 points per game. With their defense the Bulls are winning and in opposition to the Lakers they lead their Central Division standings going into this game. Even though they are out rebounding all but two NBA teams, they are 15th in scoring.
Carlos Boozer who has been hobbled for a while now is a key injury to watch for this week for the Chicago Bulls. The oft injured Bynum may again miss the most of the regular season, so the Los Angeles Lakers are still without their big man. The Lakers need the big man to clog up the middle as their losing streak last week shows.
