NBA betting odds for the Western Conference Finals are on the board with the Los Angeles Lakers favored against the Phoenix Suns.The Lakers are the defending champs and have Kobe Bryant but the reason they may have success in this series vs. the basketball betting line is their size.
NBA betting numbers for Game 1 on Monday list the Lakers as 6.5 point favorites at home against Phoenix. The Lakers have been playing very well of late and they controlled the Suns during the regular season, winning three of the four matchups. The Lakers won against Phoenix because they pounded the ball inside and they will look to do so again in this series. “As we look into the playoffs, we’ve had size and it’s been our strength and we want to exploit it, and we certainly will against the Phoenix Suns,” head coach Phil Jackson said.
The Lakers have Paul Gasol, Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom inside and they present matchup problems for Phoenix. The Suns have Amare Stoudemire but he doesn’t play any defense and center Robin Lopez has been hurt. If the Suns are to win this series in NBA betting vs. the Lakers they are going to have to find a way to control the Lakers inside game.
The Suns are getting excellent play from Steve Nash who is averaging 17.8 points and nine assists per game in the playoffs. Stoudemire is always solid on the offensive end and the Suns are 31-4 when Jason Richardson scores 20 points or more. While the Suns score a lot of points they don’t do quite as well against the Lakers. Stoudemire shoots 55 percent in his career but against the Lakers he shoots only 47 percent. He shot 46 percent in four games against the Lakers this season while shooting 56 percent against the rest of the league. “He understands that he just can’t drive the ball in there because they have unbelievable length,” Suns coach Alvin Gentry said. “He understands that, in certain situations, you have to pull up and take jump shots and take what is given to you.”
The focus in this basketball betting series will be on Kobe and Nash but inside is where this series will be won or lost. The Suns need Lopez to play effectively and they need Stoudemire to at least play some defense or they are not going to win.