In the second game of today’s NBA playoff slate, the Oklahoma City Thunder will be taking on the Los Angeles Lakers. The Thunder have jumped out to a 2-0 series lead and have yet to lose a game in these playoffs. But the action will return to Los Angeles tonight, where the Lakers will be hoping for a different result.

You can check out the full preview and prediction for the series on DraftKings Network here.

Looking at the odds for Game 3, the Thunder enter as an 8.5-point favorite and hold -375 odds of winning outright on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Lakers hold +295 odds of winning outright with the game total set at 211.5 points.

Thunder at Lakers preview

The Los Angeles Lakers finished the regular season with a 53-29 overall record to earn the fourth seed in the Western Conference. They continue to battle injuries, with Luka Doncic remaining sidelined, but they took down the Rockets in the opening round in six games to earn this matchup with the defending champions. On the season overall, the Lakers have gone 50-40 against the spread, and the game total is 44-46 to the over/under.

Outside of Doncic, Jarred Vanderbilt is the lone other player on the injury report for the Lakers. Vanderbilt suffered a gruesome-looking finger injury in Game 1 and is listed as questionable with the right finger dislocation designation. LeBron James continues to headline the production for the Lakers, posting averages of 23.6 points, 7.8 assists, and 6.1 rebounds per game across the postseason. Austin Reaves made his return for the past four games, posting averages of 19.0 points, 5.0 assists, and 3.5 rebounds since returning. Marcus Smart, Deandre Ayton, Rui Hachimura, and Luke Kennard each also play major roles.

Los Angeles leans on an offensive-minded style of play for its success. It finished the regular season ranked 11th in scoring, ninth in offensive rating, 11th in opponent points allowed, and 19th in defensive rating.

The Oklahoma City Thunder are attempting to defend last year’s championship title, and they are off to a 6-0 start to the postseason. They finished the regular season with an NBA-best 64-18 record. In some regards, it feels we have collectively become numb to how good and deep this team is, and they are making their best effort to provide a reminder. On the season, Oklahoma City has gone 43-45 against the spread, and the game total is 47-41 to the over/under.

Jalen Williams remains sidelined with his hamstring strain for the Thunder. It has not tripped up Oklahoma City just yet, but Williams was a crucial part of last year’s championship run. He has battled injuries all season and failed to look like the best version of himself for any extended stretch, and the Thunder will hope this changes for the final playoff push. Thomas Sorber is the lone other player sidelined as he continues to recover from his ACL tear.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander continues to headline the production, posting averages of 29.2 points, 6.7 assists, and 3.2 rebounds across the postseason. Chet Holmgren has improved his output, posting averages of 19.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game across the first six playoff games. Ajay Mitchell has seen his role scaled up amid Williams’ injury, while Lu Dort, Isaiah Hartenstein, Cason Wallace, Isaiah Joe, and Jared McCain each make their impact felt.

The Thunder closed the regular season ranked fifth in the NBA in scoring. Oklahoma City also ranks seventh in offensive rating, fifth in field-goal percentage, and ninth in three-point percentage. Defensively, the Thunder rank second in opponent points per game, first in defensive rating, first in opponent field-goal percentage, and 25th in opponent three-point percentage.

Series Takeaways

The Thunder have leaped out to a 2-0 series lead in fairly dominant fashion.

They tallied a 108-90 victory in Game 1, covering the 15.5-point spread. Oklahoma City led for 79% of the matchup, extended the lead to as many as 21, and limited the Lakers to 41% shooting and 33% from beyond the three-point arc. Austin Reaves was limited to 3-for-16 shooting and missed all five of his three-point attempts.

In the second matchup, Oklahoma City produced a 125-107 win. The defending champions led for 80% of the matchup and pushed the lead to as large as 20 to ultimately cover the 16.5-point spread. Los Angeles shot 50% from the floor and 38% from the perimeter, but it did not bring the same defensive effort it showed in Game 1.

In the larger scale of the conversation, the series has felt closer than the final scores indicate. It takes all-out effort for the full 48 minutes to defeat this Thunder team, and the Lakers have had a few slips that they were punished for. Los Angeles has largely hung around in both matchups, but Oklahoma City has been able to go on a run that it has been unable to match. The Lakers will hope this changes as the series returns to their home floor.

Thunder at Lakers Game 3 prediction, pick

The Thunder are the more talented team on both sides of the ball, and this will be true in every matchup they face. But the Lakers have made it more competitive than the final scores fully show. It was a five-point game with 7:36 remaining in the fourth quarter of the previous matchup before Oklahoma City went on a run to produce the comfortable win.

It is difficult to beat any team three times in a row, and the Lakers have performed much better at home this season. They went 28-13 straight-up at home across the regular season, went 2-1 at home in the opening round, and are 27-17 against the spread at home this season.

There is no way around acknowledging that the Thunder have the talent and depth advantage. But LeBron James has continued to make some progress in finding ways to create an edge. The Lakers largely had a good enough defensive effort in Game 1 and a solid offensive effort in the last game, but they have not been able to put it together on both sides of the ball.

If it does not happen tonight, it never will for this Lakers team. Even with the 2-0 series deficit, there are positive takeaways from Los Angeles’ perspective. Expect it to play with the necessary level of desperation and have a more consistent performance on their home court. It is a tall ask to go toe-to-toe with the defending champions, but they have not had as many difficulties with Jalen Williams’ injury as you would expect. Count on a clear effort to force the ball out of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s hands and force others to beat them.

While I did not give the Lakers much of a chance in this series in the full preview, they have looked the part more than felt fair to expect. If they cannot get a result tonight, the series should largely be viewed as over. But this feels like their clear best opportunity that the Lakers can take advantage of. Expect Los Angeles to be able to limit the game-changing runs at a better rate and for the Lakers to keep this game competitive until the end to cover the 8.5-point spread as they fight with desperation to keep the series alive.

Best Bet: Lakers +8.5 (-110)