The Phoenix Suns can send the Los Angeles Lakers home with a win this Thursday night at Staples Center. The Lakers will not make it easy for the Suns, but who knows how this game transpires? Check out our preview of this game below.
The Suns can finish the job this Thursday in Hollywood. They know their script, and it’s just a matter of executing it. That mostly lies in the hands of Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and Deandre Ayton. Although Paul is being slowed down by a shoulder injury, don’t expect him to sit this one out. Booker, meanwhile, has been torching the Lakers in this series, though he hasn’t been particularly great when the game is at STAPLES Center. Nevertheless, Booker is leading the Suns with 26.2 points per game in the first round. Ayton is also having quite a series. He is shooting 80.0 percent from the field against the Lakers. If Anthony Davis misses Game 6, Ayton will have a grand opportunity to make a killing down low.
The Suns are 6-2-1 against the spread in their last nine games in the playoffs as the underdog. The over is 9-2 in the Suns’ last 11 games away from home.
Uh oh. The Lakers no longer have any room for error as a loss would mean an embarrassing quick playoff exit for the defending champions. The Lakers might have to roll in Game 6 minus Davis, who also didn’t play in Game 5. Davis is nursing a groin injury and his status for Thursday night’s game remains up in the air, as of this writing. If he can’t go, the Lakers are hoping Andre Drummond will step up in the frontcourt along with Marc Gasol. Dennis Schroder also needs to wake up after a scoreless effort in Game 5. LeBron James will surely be the go-to guy for the Lakers, but he’s definitely going to need ample support from Schroder and company, especially if Davis will be ruled out of the contest. So far in the series, the Lakers are scoring just 97.0 points on 41.3 percent shooting from the field.
The Lakers are 5-2 against the spread in their last seven games in the first round of the playoffs. The under is 5-0-1 in the Lakers’ last six games overall.
