Lakers Championship Odds Plummet to +500 Following Game 1 Loss to Trail Blazers

• The odds of the Los Angeles Lakers winning the NBA Championship have nearly doubled to +500
• LA was dropped 100-93 by the Portland Trail Blazers in Game 1 of their first-round playoff series
• See updated NBA Championship odds after Game 1’s in each playoff series below

Do the Los Angeles Lakers have a realistic shot at the NBA title? Thanks to the Portland Trail Blazers, this is a question already being legitimately posed within league circles.

A 100-93 loss to the Trail Blazers in Game 1 of the Western Conference first-round series raised other concerns about the Lakers.

For example, is there anyone on the team beyond LeBron James and Anthony Davis who has a shot?

Sportsbooks are quickly also having their doubts about the legitimacy of this team as a championship contender.

Prior to the Game 1 loss, depending upon which sports betting site you checked, the Lakers hovered with a betting line between +250 and +270 in the 2020 NBA Championship odds.

Today, those odds have nearly doubled and fallen to +500.

2020 NBA Championship Odds

Odds as of Aug. 19th. Go to FanDuel.com for odds on all teams.

The Clippers, LA’s other NBA team, and the Milwaukee Bucks sit as co-favorites to win the NBA title at odds of +260.

The Gang That Couldn’t Shoot Straight

The superstars delivered the goods for the Lakers in Game 1. James posted a triple-double with 23 points, 17 rebounds and 16 assists. Davis netted a team-high 28 points, adding 11 rebounds and two blocks.

Perhaps the Lakers simply need a reset for Game 2, another chance to set the foundation for a playoff run in motion.

If that’s the case, there’s good news, because they threw up enough bricks in Game 1 to get a good start on building that foundation.

Check out some of these Game 1 numbers in terms of field-goal and three-point shooting: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (0-9, 0-5), Danny Green (4-12, 2-8), Kyle Kuzma (5-14, 1-5), and Alex Caruso (1-5, 0-3) were all abysmal from the floor.

None For the Money

LA was 34-for-97 from the floor (.351) in Game 1. Taking it beyond the arc, things moved beyond the pale.

The Lakers hit threes at a 15% rate (5-for-32). James, Davis and Caldwell-Pope were a combined 1-for-15 from outside the stripe.

That’s nothing new for this team, however.

So according to the league's tracking data, 27 of the Lakers' 35 threes last night were classified as either open or wide open. They converted only 2 of their 16 wide open chances.

That just can't happen if they expect to win this series. pic.twitter.com/W9zDa58dOT

— Alex Regla (@AlexmRegla) August 19, 2020

Prior to the COVID-19-caused pause to the season, LA was 26th in the NBA at shooting threes (32.6%). Since the resumption of the season inside the bubble in Orlando, it’s grown worse, dropping to 28.6%. That’s dead-last in the NBA.

Portland is also well aware that this isn’t a trend or an anomaly for the Lakers. It’s a fact of life.

During Game 1, the Trail Blazers collapsed down low on defense and took the paint away from LA. They invited the Lakers to shoot all the threes they desired.

Portland Blazing a Trail?

On the other side of the floor, it was raining threes. Portland was 13-of-34 on threes (38.2%) and it was a bit of an off night for the Trail Blazers. They led the NBA this season at 42.2%.

Damian Lillard delivered a game-high 34 points, including 6-of-13 from 3-point range. CJ McCollum contributed 21 points.

Reacting to the Lakers losing Game 1. pic.twitter.com/kHE8CPawYa

— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 19, 2020

Portland is the hottest team inside the NBA bubble. The Trail Blazers are now 8-2. They’ve won five in a row and seven of eight.

There should be legitimate concern about Portland where the Lakers are concerned. The Trail Blazers have won two in a row and three of five from LA. Going back to 2014, Portland holds a 19-4 edge in head-to-head meetings.

Are Lakers Built for the Playoffs?

There’s a reason why the Lakers pursued Kawhi Leonard so hard during last year’s free agent period. Deep down, they knew they didn’t have enough to win it all.

Look at the plus-minus numbers posted by some of the Lakers’ starting five in Game 1. Davis and Green were both -20. Caldwell-Pope was -18, JaVale McGee -9.

The Lakers are…

-64 in JaVale McGee's 115 minutes in bubble

+23 in their 245 minutes without JaVale McGee in the bubble.

JaVale McGee has not had a positive point-differential in a single bubble game.

How much more do you need to see, Frank?

— Sam Quinn (@SamQuinnCBS) August 19, 2020

LA must spread out Portland’s defense on the floor. It might be time for Lakers coach Frank Vogel to take a look further down his bench.

Dion Waiters drew 1:13 of action in Game 1. Veteran JR Smith didn’t see the floor at all.

Smith is a career 37% 3-point shooter in the postseason.  Waiters shows a career average of 34.6% from beyond the arc.

Too Little, Too Late?

The reality is that Lakers remain -220 favorites to eliminate the Trail Blazers. Yet it’s difficult to envision this team lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy aloft.

James is closing in on his 36th birthday. He hasn’t won a playoff game since 2018 and is 0-5 in his last five postseason appearances. He’s still a great player but he can’t close the deal by himself.

I *might* wait one more game, but the Lakers have to think about changing their starting 5 — Kuzma or Caruso (likely Kuz) for McGee. The offense is just in mud. POR was plus-13 in 11 minutes w/ the Whiteside/Nurkic combo, that should not happen. POR continues to be a great story

— Zach Lowe (@ZachLowe_NBA) August 19, 2020

Davis was a wise addition. However, beyond that 1-2 punch, the Lakers don’t measure up well against the Clippers or Bucks.

Even at this inflated price, they’re not a sound investment.