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Match Details
Fixture: LA Lakers vs Portland Trail Blazers
Date & Time: Monday, August 24th, 9 PM ET (Tuesday, 6:30 AM IST)
Venue: AdventHealth Arena, Orlando, FL
The Portland Trail Blazers have made it a habit of starting strong but failing to carry that momentum throughout the game in this series. The LA Lakers clamped their defense in the second half of Game 3 to win the tie and secure the lead in the first round.
LA Lakers Preview
Any night both LeBron James and Anthony Davis shoot over 60% from the field, the LA Lakers are going to be fine. They continue to make the Portland Trail Blazers toil hard by playing physical basketball on both ends of the court.
The star frontcourt duo needs to improve free-throw shooting because missing 12 attempts collectively from the charity stripe won't be an option in every game. Danny Green is still struggling from the field but Alex Caruso and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope have both redeemed themselves after the shocker in Game 1. Rajon Rondo is also likely to make his return for this game.
Key Player - Anthony Davis
Anthony Davis is finally doing all the things expected of him. He swatted an ambitious dunk attempt by Damian Lillard to reiterate his authority as a shot-blocker and has given the Portland bigs a hard time on the boards. He has scored 60 points in the last two games for the LA Lakers and has shot the ball efficiently.
Lakers Predicted Lineup
LeBron James, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Danny Green, Anthony Davis, JaVale McGee
Portland Trail Blazers Preview
The Portland Trail Blazers are in sixes and sevens right now. They're getting bullied by the LA Lakers underneath the basket and their offensive game seems to have found its kryptonite. The starters playing extended minutes regularly doesn't help either, as proved by Jusuf Nurkic looking out of gas in the final quarter of Game 3.
Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum failed to get going in the final stretches of their last encounter and that's very reminiscent of how Portland got swept in the West Finals last year. Terry Stotts will have to find immediate solutions if his side is to thrive beyond Game 5 in this series series.
Key Player - Damian Lillard
Damian Lillard has had good starts in this series against the LA Lakers but his tendency to go missing in the second half is starting to hurt the Portland Trail Blazers. He had 34 points on Saturday but the occasion demanded more. Lillard couldn't come up big as he missed all his attempts from downtown in the fourth quarter but will be hoping to rectify that in the next outing.
Trail Blazers Predicted Lineup
Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum, Carmelo Anthony, Hassan Whiteside, Jusuf Nurkic
Lakers vs Trail Blazers Match Prediction
The LA Lakers continue to improve and subsequently, the Portland Trail Blazers have failed to match their prowess. Rondo's return will be a huge boost for Frank Vogel's men while conditioning issues are already creeping up for Portland. This looks like a simple LA Lakers win on paper yet again.
Where to watch Lakers vs Trail Blazers?
Local telecast of the game will be available on Spectrum SportsNet and NBC Sports Northwest while TNT will be carrying the national coverage. Fans in India and catch this fixture on Sony Six. You can also live stream the same via the NBA League Pass.
Also read: Houston Rockets vs OKC Thunder Prediction & Match Preview - August 24th, 2020 | Game 4
Guess the Lakers players!
