NBA
Wednesday, December 25
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Heat at Lakers: What bettors need to know
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Miami Heat at Los Angeles Lakers (+8.5, 207)
Two of the holiday season's most popular attractions do battle Christmas Day as the two-time defending-champion Miami Heat take on the decidedly less star-studded Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center. Miami comes into the Wednesday evening showdown having escaped with a 121-119 overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks two nights earlier. The Lakers find themselves scrambling to get back to the .500 mark after getting walloped 117-90 by Phoenix.
The matchup was undoubtedly put together with an eye toward Miami's Big Three, led by perennial MVP candidate LeBron James, tangling with Los Angeles' talented trio of Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Pau Gasol. But Bryant is out until February with a stress fracture in his knee while Nash continues to miss time with a nerve root irritation. Gasol has been the only reliable option in the struggling Lakers' starting five and faces a tall task against the powerhouse Heat.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, ABC
LINE: The Lakers are 8.5 point home dogs and opening at +8. The total moved from 206.5 to 207.
POWER RANKINGS: Miami (-14.5) - Los Angeles (-5) + home court (-3) = Miami -6.5
ABOUT THE HEAT (21-6, 13-14 ATS): Miami realized early in the season that it would need to regulate its star players' minutes in order to ensure they stay healthy heading into what is hopefully another long playoff run. The Heat employed part of that strategy Monday against the Hawks, giving veteran guard Dwyane Wade the night off to deal what the team called "soreness." It was curious timing - Wade is the reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week - but head coach Eric Spoelstra wanted Wade at his best heading into the game against the Lakers.
ABOUT THE LAKERS (13-15, 15-12-1 ATS): Los Angeles wishes its problems could be solved by a little extra rest. The season is quickly spiraling out of control and hit a new low against the up-tempo Suns as the Lakers shot just 37 percent from the field while getting outrebounded by an absurd 62-39 margin. Gasol returned to the lineup against Phoenix after missing the previous game with an upper respiratory infection but looked overmatched against Suns big man Mason Plumlee, who racked up 17 points and 20 rebounds in the one-sided win.
TRENDS:
* Heat are 9-1 ATS in the last 10 meetings.
* Under is 5-1 in the last six meetings.
* Heat are 4-1 ATS in the last five meeting in Los Angeles.
* Underdog is 8-2 ATS in the last 10 meetings.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. The teams last met Feb. 10, with the Heat rolling to a 107-97 triumph behind 32 points from James.
2. Wade averages 25 points and 6.5 assists in 19 career regular-season games versus Los Angeles.
3. Miami is 7-2 in Christmas Day games since coming into the league, while the Lakers are 6-8 since 1990.
Wednesday, December 25
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Heat at Lakers: What bettors need to know
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Miami Heat at Los Angeles Lakers (+8.5, 207)
Two of the holiday season's most popular attractions do battle Christmas Day as the two-time defending-champion Miami Heat take on the decidedly less star-studded Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center. Miami comes into the Wednesday evening showdown having escaped with a 121-119 overtime victory over the Atlanta Hawks two nights earlier. The Lakers find themselves scrambling to get back to the .500 mark after getting walloped 117-90 by Phoenix.
The matchup was undoubtedly put together with an eye toward Miami's Big Three, led by perennial MVP candidate LeBron James, tangling with Los Angeles' talented trio of Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Pau Gasol. But Bryant is out until February with a stress fracture in his knee while Nash continues to miss time with a nerve root irritation. Gasol has been the only reliable option in the struggling Lakers' starting five and faces a tall task against the powerhouse Heat.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, ABC
LINE: The Lakers are 8.5 point home dogs and opening at +8. The total moved from 206.5 to 207.
POWER RANKINGS: Miami (-14.5) - Los Angeles (-5) + home court (-3) = Miami -6.5
ABOUT THE HEAT (21-6, 13-14 ATS): Miami realized early in the season that it would need to regulate its star players' minutes in order to ensure they stay healthy heading into what is hopefully another long playoff run. The Heat employed part of that strategy Monday against the Hawks, giving veteran guard Dwyane Wade the night off to deal what the team called "soreness." It was curious timing - Wade is the reigning Eastern Conference Player of the Week - but head coach Eric Spoelstra wanted Wade at his best heading into the game against the Lakers.
ABOUT THE LAKERS (13-15, 15-12-1 ATS): Los Angeles wishes its problems could be solved by a little extra rest. The season is quickly spiraling out of control and hit a new low against the up-tempo Suns as the Lakers shot just 37 percent from the field while getting outrebounded by an absurd 62-39 margin. Gasol returned to the lineup against Phoenix after missing the previous game with an upper respiratory infection but looked overmatched against Suns big man Mason Plumlee, who racked up 17 points and 20 rebounds in the one-sided win.
TRENDS:
* Heat are 9-1 ATS in the last 10 meetings.
* Under is 5-1 in the last six meetings.
* Heat are 4-1 ATS in the last five meeting in Los Angeles.
* Underdog is 8-2 ATS in the last 10 meetings.
BUZZER BEATERS:
1. The teams last met Feb. 10, with the Heat rolling to a 107-97 triumph behind 32 points from James.
2. Wade averages 25 points and 6.5 assists in 19 career regular-season games versus Los Angeles.
3. Miami is 7-2 in Christmas Day games since coming into the league, while the Lakers are 6-8 since 1990.
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