by Thomas Quaynor for Wannamakeabet.com
Two of the NBA’s storied franchises face off as the New York Knicks (41-23) visit the Los Angeles Lakers (38-25) this afternoon at Crypto.com Arena on ABC. This is the second and final meeting between the teams, New York defeated Los Angeles 112-100 at home on Feb. 1. The Lakers have won three of the last four against the Knicks.
New York is a 3.5-point favorite and the total is 228.5.
WHAT BOTH TEAMS DID IN THEIR LAST GAME
New York destroyed Denver 142-103 on the road on Friday. The 39-point loss tied a franchise record for Denver — matching a 111-72 loss to the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls in February 1998. New York actually trailed 27-20 late in the first quarter, but outscored Denver 38-23 in the second quarter to take a 65-52 lead at the half, and obliterated the Nuggets for the rest of the game.
OG Anonuby stuffed the stat sheet with a game-high 34 points (11-17 FG, 6-11 3 Pt, 6-6 FT), 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 steals and a block across 32 minutes for the Knicks in the win. Josh Hart added 18 points (8-12 FG, 2-4 3Pt, 0-2 FT) and 5 rebounds, while Karl-Anthony Towns tallied 17 points and 13 rebounds.
Friday’s win at Denver began a five-game road trip for the Knicks. They’ll play the Clippers, Jazz and Pacers after today’s game against the Lakers.
The LeBron-less Lakers toppled the hapless Indiana Pacers (15-48) 128-117 at home on Friday. LeBron James sat out due to rest/elbow inflammation. Luka Doncic picked up the scoring slack by pouring in 44 points (14-25 FG, 7-14 3Pt, 9-10 FT) in the first three quarters. The Lakers led by 19 (99-80) after 3 quarters, and Doncic never left the bench in the fourth quarter.
Luka Doncic became the fourth Lakers player to score 40 points in at least 10 games in a season. He joins Kobe Bryant, Elgin Baylor and Jerry West.
GAME STORYLINES: NEW YORK
Since signing Jalen Brunson to a four-year, $104 million free agent deal in July 2022, the New York Knicks went from the outhouse to the penthouse as they’ve experienced a tremendous amount of success with Brunson emerging as an elite player.
In Brunson’s first three seasons with New York he went from a 16.3 points per game scorer in his last year with Dallas (2021-22) to ppg averages of 24.0, 28.7 and 26.0. The Knicks also won 47, 50 and 51 games over the last 3 seasons, the franchise’s best multi-year stretch since the mid-1990’s when Hall of Famer Patrick Ewing anchored the team. Brunson received a four-year, $156 million extension in July 2024 due to his superb play.
Jalen Brunson has continued his excellent play this season in his fourth year with the Knicks. The 29-year-old, Villanova product is averaging 26.2 points, 6.5 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 2.8 threes on 46.4 percent shooting from the floor and 37.8 percent shooting from long distance through 59 games. Brunson was named an All-Star for a third straight year.
The foursome of All-Star center Karl-Anthony Towns (19.7 ppg, 11.9 rebs, 1.6 threes, 48.5% from 2 in 60 gms), athletic forward OJ Anunoby (16.4 ppg, 5.2 rebs, 1.7 stls, 2.2 threes, 47.8% from 2, 36.9% from 3 in 50 gms), sharpshooting forward Mikal Bridges (15.5 ppg, 4 rebs, 1.4 stls, 2 threes, 49.9% from 2, 38.5% from 3 in 64 gms) and versatile wing Josh Hart (11.9 ppg, 7.5 rebs, 5.2 asts, 1.1 stls, 1.5 threes, 49.2% from 2, 38% from 3 in 52 gms) round out one of the best starting 5’s in the NBA.
The Knicks were dealt a tough blow when super sixth-man Miles McBride (12.9 ppg, 2.9 threes) suffered a sports hernia injury on Jan. 27. He’s expected to miss the rest of the regular season. McBride’s ability to score in bunches off the bench or filling in for an injured starter was invaluable for the Knicks. Trade deadline acquisition and New York native Jose Alvarado (7.3 ppg, 3.8 asts, 1.3 stls in 12 gms w/NY) and Landry Shamet (10.1 ppg, 2.3 threes) have done an adequate job replacing McBride’s production.
GAME STORYLINES: LOS ANGELES
When the Los Angeles Lakers shocked the sports and non-sports world by acquiring Dallas Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic on February 2, 2025, it was expected that Doncic — along with fellow superstar LeBron James — would make the Lakers immediate championship contenders. I mean, Doncic had just led Dallas to the NBA Finals in June 2024.
Unfortunately, Luka Doncic’s 13-month tenure in Los Angeles has been somewhat underwhelming when you consider the expectations. The Lakers got off to a fast start with Doncic initially, when they won 12 of their first 14 games in February 2025, but the season ended with an embarrassing 4-1 playoff series loss to the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves. Doncic had essentially eliminated that same Minnesota team a year earlier in the 2024 Western Conference Finals.
The 2025-26 season has been topsy-turvy for the Lakers as they enter today’s game with a respectable 38-25 record, but they are not anywhere close to Western Conference powers Oklahoma City (50-15) and San Antonio (46-17). There also appears to be a rift between Luka Doncic and LeBron James, as the two have yet to really mesh together on the court since they’ve been teammates. There are rumblings that Luka and the team plays better when LeBron is not on the floor.
Despite the underwhelming season as a team, Luka Doncic has maintained his stellar level of play in year 8. The 27-year-old, Slovenian superstar is averaging an NBA-leading 32.5 points, 8.5 assists, 7.8 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 3.7 threes on 47.5 percent shooting from the floor in 51 games. He was selected as an All-Star for the sixth time in his career this season.
The trio of emerging guard Austin Reaves (23.5 ppg, 5.4 asts, 4.7 rebs, 1.1 stls, 2.4 threes, 49.5% from 2, 37% from 3 in 37 gms), 41-year-old, future Hall of Famer LeBron James (21.4 ppg, 7 asts, 5.6 rebs, 1.1 stls, 1.4 threes, 50.4% from 2 in 44 gms) and center Deandre Ayton (12.6 ppg, 8.2 rebs, 66.7% from 2 in 54 gms) are registering terrific individual seasons. The 27-year-old Reaves is averaging career-highs in points and rebounds. LeBron James was named an All-Star for a record 22nd straight season.
THE PICK: KNICKS (-3.5)
New York’s last three road wins have been by an average of 28 points a game. I think they take care of business this afternoon against a Lakers team that seems to lack direction. Lay the Points and take the Knicks this afternoon!
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