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Now that LeBron James is done courting players at the All-Star Game to join him next season on the Los Angeles Lakers, it’s time to get back to work to try and lift his club into a playoff spot.
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It looked like the Lakers were a lock to reach the postseason, then James was shelved with an injury and the season started to unravel. Entering the unofficial second half of the season, the Lakers find themselves three games out of the last playoff spot and the push to join the top eight in the West begins Thursday against James Harden and the Houston Rockets.
Houston Rockets at Los Angeles Lakers
Date and Time: Thursday, February 21, 2019, 10:30 p.m. ET
Location: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
Opening NBA Odds: Rockets -2.5, O/U 233
Rockets at Lakers TV Coverage: TNT
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Odds Analysis
It’s been awhile since the Rockets played with a full roster and with bodies returning we could see them morph into the club that posted the best record in the Association last season. And they could use the infusion after losing twice in three games before the break. One reason why the Rockets are in the middle of the playoff pack is their inability to win consistently on the road.
Houston had the best road record last season, but their loss in Minnesota just before the hiatus dropped the Rockets to 13-15 overall while going 10-18 ATS. Even with the heroics of James Harden they’ve only been able to split their last eight games.
Expecting a boost from the return of James, the Lakers instead fell further off the pace in the West. James missed 17 games, returned for a win over the Clippers then sat out a loss to Golden State. He was back in the lineup for the final four games of the road trip and the Lakers went 1-3 with huge losses to Indiana and Philly, and a crushing defeat to the Hawks. The Lakers lost twice to the Rockets with James on board and dropped a third contest while he was nursing his sore groin.
Rockets
It’s hard to know exactly what the Rockets are since we haven’t seen them much at full strength during the first half of the season. Chris Paul missed a number of games with hammy issues and Clint Capela has been on the shelf for more than a month with a hand injury. We’ll get a better idea of what they can do now that Capela is set to rejoin the club. The Rockets lacked an inside presence without him and the defense in particular suffered. We don’t know what to expect from him after the lengthy absence, but the Rockets are a much better team with him on the floor.
We can expect Harden to continue scoring. The league leader in points per game has reached the 30-point mark in 31 straight games and has scored at least 40 points in 18 of those matchups. He went into the All-Star break with a 42-point effort against the Wolves and shows no signs of slowing down after topping the 40-point plateau in four of his last six games. Harden’s streak began with a 50-point game against the Lakers and he’s averaging 44.7 points in three games against them.
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Lakers
LeBron was brought in for one thing: take the Lakers to the playoffs. He was fulfilling his obligation with the team firmly entrenched among the top-8 after a Christmas Day win over the Warriors. But the season went a different direction when James pulled up lame in that contest. The Lakers managed only six wins in the 17 games James missed and they tumbled out of a playoff spot. There is time left and games remaining, but both are decreasing rapidly.
James knows a few things about carrying a team and he’s taken over that role with his new club. Asked about the atmosphere around the Lakers, James said playoff intensity has been activated. We don’t know if that will result in wins, but an intense James is usually very good. We can expect the young players who were mentioned in recent trade talks with the Pelicans to feel a little more secure, and guys like Kyle Kuzma and Brandon Ingram need to play a stronger role around their leader.
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Everybody feels rested and energized after the break so there’s a lot of optimism on both sides. We can expect Harden to keep scoring and the return of Capela should make the Rockets better defensively. However, when James says he’s turning up the intensity level for a playoff push, I have to side with the Lakers. He has the ability to make teammates better while taking over a game by himself. And he’s still the best player on the planet who appears to be completely healed from the groin issue. With LeBron locked in, it’s hard to go against the Lakers.
NBA Score Prediction: Lakers 121, Rockets 115
