Miami Heat vs Los Angeles Lakers Odds
Published on February 10th, 2013 2:51 pm ESTKobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers will travel to Miami to do battle with the Heat this Sunday afternoon. Tip-off is at 3:30 pm EST, and the game will be broadcast on ABC.
When the season started, many experts had the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat squaring off in the NBA Finals in June. After all, the Lakers had added Dwight Howard and Steve Nash in the off-season, and they looked destined to start another dynasty in LA. The Heat, on the other hand, were expected to make it back to the Finals with no issues.
Unfortunately for the Lakers, their ambitions of returning to the Finals have gone off the rails. Steve Nash went down with an injury early in the season, and the Lakers have had trouble meshing and becoming the team that everybody thought that they would be. Even with Nash's return to the line-up, the Lakers have continued to struggle. How do you make Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Paul Gasol and others happy at the same time? That is the issue that has been plaguing the Lakers this season.
The Lakers currently have a record of 24-27 and are currently 3 1/2 games out of a playoff spot.
The Heat, on the other hand, are cruising. The Heat currently have a record of 33-14 and are perched comfortably atop the Eastern Conference. It's hard to imagine the Heat having trouble with any Eastern Conference team in a seven game series, and most people are expecting the Heat to return to the Finals with no problems. LeBron James is playing better than ever, which is trouble for the rest of the league.
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The Heat are big favorites to beat the Lakers on national TV. Here are the current betting odds for the game:
Los Angeles Lakers, +9
Miami Heat, -9
Moneyline
Los Angeles Lakers, +310
Miami Heat, -420
Over/Under - 204 points
Over 204 points, -110
Under 204 points, -110
It's hard to imagine any team with Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Dwight Howard being a +310 underdog, even on the road, but that's where we are at this season.
