Suns vs Lakers Game 6 Preview: Between AD’s Uncertain Status and Game 5 Blowout, Is It Time to Write the Lakers Off?

Heading into the Suns vs Lakers series, the defending NBA champions were favored to win the series despite being the lower-seeded team. After injuries derailed their regular season, the Lakers entered the postseason with good health and positive momentum.

Even a Game 1 loss in Phoenix didn’t significantly alter their status as series favorites. That status was at its strongest after they won Games 2 and 3. But now the Lakers sit on the brink of elimination after consecutive losses, including Tuesday’s 30-point rout. And not only is an early exit looming, injury issues have reared their head again.

Can the Lakers save their season tonight, with or without Anthony Davis? Or will the Suns taste playoff success for the first time since the Steve Nash era?

Phoenix Suns (3-2) vs Los Angeles Lakers (2-3), TNT, 10:30 pm ET

Suns vs Lakers Series Schedule and Results

• Sunday, May 23 | Game 1 (at Phoenix): Suns 99-90 Lakers
• Tuesday, May 25 | Game 2 (at Phoenix): Lakers 109-102 Suns
• Thursday, May 27 | Game 3 (at Los Angeles): Lakers 109-95 Suns
• Sunday, May 30 | Game 4 (at Los Angeles): Suns 100-92 Lakers
• Tuesday, June 1 | Game 5 (at Phoenix): Suns 115-85 Lakers
• Thursday, June 3 | Game 6 (at Los Angeles): Suns vs Lakers, TNT, 10:30 pm ET
• Saturday, June 5 | Game 7 (at Phoenix): Lakers at Suns, TBD, TBD (if necessary)

Suns vs Lakers Series Betting Odds

• Phoenix Suns -290
• Los Angeles Lakers +225

Suns vs Lakers Game 6 Betting Odds

• Spread: Suns +2 (-106), Lakers -2 (-114)
• Total: OVER 207.5 (-110), UNDER 207.5 (-110)
• Moneyline: Suns +112, Lakers -132

Suns vs Lakers Game 6 Betting Consensus

• Spread: 100% Suns, 0% Lakers (at +/-2.5)
• Total: 88% OVER, 13% UNDER (at O/U 207.5)
• Moneyline: 63% Suns, 38% Lakers

Suns vs Lakers odds are via BetOnline Sportsbook as of Thursday, June 3 at 1:20 pm ET. For more NBA betting odds, check out our NBA odds page. It features updated odds from BetOnline and other top online sportsbooks.

Betting News uses an aggregation of picks from reputable industry sources for all NBA, MLB, and NHL games that are previewed on the site. For detailed Suns vs Lakers betting information, including a source-by-source betting picks breakdown, check out the Suns vs Lakers matchup page.

Phoenix Suns vs Los Angeles Lakers Game 6 Matchup: Picks, Odds, Stats and More

Is it Suns or Bust for Game 6 Bets?

NBA odds for tonight’s matchup place the homestanding Lakers as small favorites. But tonight’s Suns vs Lakers picks favor the Suns to both cover and close out the series at Staples Center.

Based on what we have seen in the series and the position the Lakers are in, the only way to go here is to back the Suns or avoid any side bets. The reasons to believe in the Lakers have evaporated, quite simply. And even AD getting the all-clear doesn’t really change that, with his potential impact an uncertainty.

In the past, the thought of LeBron James leading a team in a pivotal game would inspire no shortage of confidence. But vintage LeBron has not made an appearance yet in this series. Even if he does, can his teammates be counted on to provide enough to force a decisive Game 7?

LeBron had one of his better individual games in Game 5, as he made six threes and scored 24 points. But after making his first two shots in the first two minutes of the game, he was largely invisible as the Suns snatched control with runs of 16-0 and 24-2. He did score 17 points in the third quarter, but that was after the game was for all intents and purposes over.

Meanwhile, Dennis Schroder missed all nine of his shots and was held scoreless, as the Lakers’ other four starters accounted for only 11 points. Overall, other than LeBron, the only other performances of note were by Kyle Kuzma (6 of 13, 15 points) and Talen Horton-Tucker, who put up 11 points and 11 rebounds in 16 minutes, his most significant action of the series.

LeBron James vs The Other Lakers in Game 5

LeBron: 24 points, 9-19 FG (47.4%), 6-10 3PT (60%)

Rest of the Lakers: 61 points, 20-65 FG (30.8%), 6-25 3PT (24%)

How do the Lakers respond, especially if AD sits again? Too many unknowns or outright negatives exist there to back them with any serious confidence, even though LeBron has yet to lose a first-round series. Yes, even with his early Cleveland Cavaliers teams.

One favorable historical trend does exist for LeBron and the Lakers, for what it’s worth. In his career, LeBron has been a part of five other 30+ point losses in the postseason. In the games following those losses, his teams went 4-1 SU. And his individual play factored in heavily, with averages of 34.2 points per game, 12.2 rebounds per game, and 6.8 assists per game.

In that bunch, the only loss–and the only game in which he failed to score at least 30–was the infamous Game 6 of the 2010 Eastern Conference finals against the Boston Celtics. In that game, he had 27 points, 19 rebounds, and 10 assists in what was the last game of his first go-round with the Cleveland Cavaliers.

But is this situation beyond his heroics? He delivered in the clutch in the play-in against the Golden State Warriors, hitting the decisive three late in the fourth. But this is a different moment. This time around, even pulling his best out of his locker may not be enough to save the day.

Phoenix Suns vs Los Angeles Lakers Game 6 Matchup: Picks, Odds, Stats and More