Lebron James Needs 36 To Break Scoring Record | Thunder vs Lakers | OSB
Oklahoma City Thunder at Los Angeles Lakers
By Sam Batz
In a highly anticipated prime time matchup, the Oklahoma City Thunder travel to the City of Angels to face Lebron James and the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday, Feb. 7th. It will be the first matchup of the season between the Thunder and Lakers, but the biggest story here concerns Lebron James and his chase for the ultimate accolade, the NBA’s all-time scoring record.
The current scoring-leader, who has held the title for nearly 40 years, remains Kareem Adbul-Jabbar with 38,387 career points. During the Lakers most recent game, Lebron added 27 points to his total, bringing him to 38,352 for his career. Lebron needs 36 points in order to surpass Abdul-Jabbar, and while it may seem impossible for a 38-year old to post numbers of that magnitude, keep in mind Lebron is averaging 30.0 points per game and has posted 36+ points 9 times this season. Lebron James truly is a freak of nature, but due to his tireless work ethic and fevervant dedication to the game, he has a real chance to make history on Tuesday night.
The Lakers are 25-29 on the year and currently reside as the 13th seed in the West. Despite the distraction of the league’s most coveted record about to be broken, Los Angeles will simply be focused on trying to win games. Lebron James has made similar remarks regarding the Lakers current situation, and claims winning has always been the most important thing. Unfortunately, the Lakers have struggled with consistency this season. They are one of five teams in the West who are below .500, and are 12 games behind the conference leading Nuggets. Hope is not lost however, as the Lakers are just 2 games out of the top-ten and a shot at a spot in the playoffs.
The Oklahoma City Thunder are just one spot above the Lakers in the Western Conference standings. They are currently the 12th seed with a record of 25-27, one game ahead of Los Angeles. The Thunder are also one of the five teams in the West with a below .500 record but remain in the hunt for a spot in the play-in game. Oklahoma City is coming off an impressive 153-121 win over the Houston Rockets, putting up 150+ points for the second-time this season. The Thunder have had a decent stretch of games, going 6-4 in their last 10, and averaging 124.6 points in their last 5. They are led by this season’s break-out superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is averaging 31.0 points, 5.6 assists, and 4.8 rebounds per game. Unfortunately, Thunder guard Luguentz Dort is out with a hamstring injury, leaving Oklahoma City without one of their premier scoring options.
Thunder vs. Lakers Season Stats
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Oklahoma City Thunder (25-27)
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Los Angeles Lakers (25-29)
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Thunder vs. Lakers In Their Last 10 Games
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Oklahoma City Thunder
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Los Angeles Lakers
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Thunder vs. Lakers Odds
Betting odds courtesy of PointsBet:
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Team |
Spread |
Total |
Moneyline |
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Oklahoma City Thunder |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
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Los Angeles Lakers |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
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Thunder vs. Lakers Bettings Trends
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Oklahoma City Thunder
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Los Angeles Lakers
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Thunder vs. Lakers All-Time Series
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder began their head-to-head series in 1967. Back then, the Thunder were still the Seattle SuperSonics, but moved to Oklahoma City in 2009, rebranding themselves with a new logo and team colors. The Supersonics were in Seattle for 41 years, and have now been the Thunder of Oklahoma City for 14 years. In that time, the Lakers and the Supersonics/Thunder have played a total of 260 regular season games. The Lakers hold a commanding series lead with 151 wins, while the Thunder trail with 109 wins. They have yet to meet this season, but split last year’s series 2-2.
Prediction
In this bottom-half of the standings battle, I would take the Lakers. The Thunder will be coming off the heels of a matchup with the Golden State Warriors the day before, and have a record of 2-4 on no rest this season. The Lakers on the other hand, will have had two full days to rest and prepare for this matchup with the Thunder. Furthermore, Oklahoma City does not travel well, winning just over a third of their games on the road. The Lakers are not a power-house at home, but with the possibility of a new all-time scoring champion looming large, you can bet Lebron James and the Lakers will come into this game fired up and ready to pour it on.
Prediction: Los Angeles Lakers Moneyline and the Over.
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