Lakers, Celtics Reunite at the Garden

What Lakers Team Will show up for Celtics?

There are several heated rivalries in the NBA, but one stands above them all: The Lakers and Celtics. The Los Angeles Lakers (27-27 SU, 24-29-1 ATS) versus the Boston Celtics (35-19 SU, 27-26-1 ATS). They’ll meet for the first time this season on Thursday. With the NBA trade deadline today who knows what p;auers will be on the court.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, TNT, Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles) LINE: Celtics -8.5; O/U: 227.

James (groin) made his return from a 17-game absence last Thursday. He played 40 minutes against the Los Angeles Clippers. He then missed the following game against the Golden State Warriors after feeling sore. He’s officially listed as day-to-day; so are Lonzo Ball (ankle) and Ivica Zubac (finger). They could also find themselves shipped out of town before Thursday’s trade deadline if the Lakers are serious about acquiring Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans.

Kyrie Irving (hip) is wrapped up in the Davis situation, too. Is he planning to leave Boston during the off-season and reunite with James in Los Angeles? Preferably with his good pal Davis joining them?

Los Angeles is in hot pursuit of disgruntled New Orleans Pelicans star Anthony Davis. They want to pair him with superstar LeBron James and have offered up just about every young player on the roster in negotiations. Kyle Kuzma, Brandon Ingram and Lonzo Ball are bait. The rumors left the Lakers looking lifeless at Indiana on Tuesday. They suffered the worst loss of James' career 136-94 while Ingram and company were serenaded with "LeBron's gonna trade you" chants at the free-throw line.

The Celtics would very much like to get into the Davis trade discussions but have to wait until July 1st. They would love to pair him with All-Star point guard Kyrie Irving. Boston is winners of 10 of their last 11 games and eased past the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-96 on the road Tuesday despite missing Irving, center Aron Baynes and forward Marcus Morris.

This, That, and a Dart Throw

James sat on the end of the bench with several empty seats between him and the rest of his teammates toward the end of Tuesday's setback. He acknowledged that what the young players are going through isn't easy. "I know it has to be tough on a lot of our guys, especially our young guys," James told reporters. "Right now, they've just never been a part of it and they're hearing it every single day -- and I know that the worst thing that you can do right now is be on social media. And I know all young guys love social media. So, that definitely can't help." The Lakers dropped 13 of 20 games since James went down with a groin injury on Dec. 25 and sit in 10th place in the Western Conference. James (32,008) became the fifth player in NBA history to reach 32,000 points on Tuesday.

Boston is not expected to make any big moves before of Thursday's deadline. They already enjoy enviable depth on a team that took James and the Cleveland Cavaliers to the seventh game of the Eastern Conference finals last season. One difference from last season is the health of swingman Gordon Hayward. He is battling some inconsistency but put up 18 points on 9-of-14 shooting, six rebounds and five assists off the bench on Tuesday.

PREDICTION: Celtics 118, Lakers 104

NBA Betting Odds & Trends

Los Angeles Lakers
LA Lakers is 2-6 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of LA Lakers's last 6 games
LA Lakers is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games on the road
LA Lakers is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 4 of LA Lakers's last 5 games on the road
LA Lakers is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games when playing Boston
LA Lakers is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games when playing Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of LA Lakers's last 5 games when playing Boston
LA Lakers is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against Boston
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of LA Lakers's last 12 games when playing on the road against Boston

Boston Celtics
The Celtics are 2-3-1 ATS in its last 6 games
Boston is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Boston's last 6 games
The Celtics are 10-4 ATS in its last 14 games at home
Boston is 13-1 SU in its last 14 games at home
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Boston's last 9 games at home
The Celtics are 3-8 ATS in its last 11 games when playing LA Lakers
Boston is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games when playing LA Lakers
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Boston's last 5 games when playing LA Lakers
The Celtics are 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against LA Lakers
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Boston's last 12 games when playing at home against LA Lakers

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