Lakers vs Heat Game 3 NBA Finals Odds and Picks
- The Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat play Game 3 of the NBA Finals on Sunday (Oct. 4, 7:30 pm EST)
- Los Angeles took Game 2 124-114 and lead the best-of-7 series 2-0
- See below for a betting preview and prediction for Game 3
If the Miami Heat don’t get healthy soon, the NBA Finals may be over in the blink of an eye. Playing without starters Goran Dragic (torn plantar fascia) and Bam Adebayo (shoulder strain), Miami dropped its second straight game to the Los Angeles Lakers 124-114 on Friday.
2-0 in the Finals
4-0 in the Mamba unis#LakersWin pic.twitter.com/LYfA26qWjV— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) October 3, 2020
The focus now shifts to Game 3 on Sunday, at 7:30 pm EST, where the Heat will look to avoid falling behind 3-games to none, and all but guaranteeing the Lakers their first championship since 2010.
Lakers vs Heat Game 3 Odds
| Team | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Lakers | -10.0 (-110) | -510 | Over 218.5 (-110) |
| Miami Heat | +10.0 (-110) | +390 | Under 218.5 (-110) |
Odds taken from FanDuel on Oct. 2nd.
Not surprisingly, LA opened up as a big favorite in the Lakers vs Heat odds, which suggests Miami may once again be missing key pieces. For context, LA was favored by just 4.5 points in Game 1 when the Heat were healthy, but the line jumped to 10.5 for Game 2 once Dragic and Adebayo were ruled out.
LA’s Dynamic Duo is Unstoppable
Much like in Game 1, Miami had no answer for LeBron James and Anthony Davis. The duo combined for 65 points, 23 rebounds and 10 assists, becoming the first Lakers teammates to score 30 points a piece in a Finals game since Shaq and Kobe back in 2002.
LeBron James Last 6 Playoff Games
| Opponent | P | REB | AST | STL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MIA | 33 | 7 | 9 | 1 |
| MIA | 25 | 13 | 9 | 1 |
| DEN | 38 | 16 | 10 | 1 |
| DEN | 26 | 9 | 8 | 0 |
| DEN | 30 | 10 | 11 | 2 |
| DEN | 26 | 11 | 4 | 0 |
LeBron finished just shy of his third triple-double in his past five outings, and was virtually flawless on offense. He became just the second player in NBA history to record at least 20 points and 9 assists without committing a turnover, joining another Lakers great Magic Johnson.
This is the 24th time in James’ career that one of his teams has held a 2-0 series lead, and he’s led them to series victory in each of the previous 23 instances.
LeBron shares what makes his relationship with AD so special. pic.twitter.com/YCqEuDsaaJ
— ESPN (@espn) October 2, 2020
AD meanwhile, eclipsed the 30-point mark for the fifth time in his last seven games, and is averaging 29.1 points per game this postseason. Without Adebayo, Davis dominated down low and on the glass, racking up 14 boards including many at the offensive end.
Miami is Over Matched
Playing on an injured ankle, Miami’s Jimmy Butler turned in a gutsy effort in a losing cause. The 31-year-old poured in 25 points and dished out a game high 13 assists, but it was still nowhere near enough to get the Heat within striking distance.
Miami trailed by 14 at halftime, and never got within 9 points of the Lakers in the second half. Including the regular season, they’re 0-4 versus LA this season, and face a steep hill to try to climb back into this series.
Mood. #HEATTwitter let's rally!#HEATCulture | #NBAFinals pic.twitter.com/zUvfzYx8NB
— Miami HEAT (@MiamiHEAT) October 2, 2020
The Heat have fallen behind 0-2 in eight previous playoff series, and have rallied back to win only one of those.
Lakers Extinguish Heat in Game 3
As far as oddsmakers are concerned this series is over. The Lakers are now -7000 to win the NBA Title and -230 to sweep Miami.
Through the first two games of the Finals, who's your Finals MVP pick? 👀 pic.twitter.com/Z0oZ2Q5gD1
— TSN (@TSN_Sports) October 3, 2020
The Heat have led for only 10:44 out of the 96 minutes played, and the Game 3 line hints that they won’t be at full strength once again. You’re not going to upset LeBron and AD missing one or perhaps two of your key starters, which makes the Lakers the side to play on Sunday.
Pick: Los Angeles Lakers -10 (-110)
As SBD's resident Swiss Army Knife, Chris covers virtually every sport including NFL, PGA, NBA, MLB, NCAAB, NCAAF and the Olympics. A true grinder, he'd rather pick off small edges in the player props market than swing for the fences with a 5-leg parlay.
