Lakers News: Los Angeles Takes on the Cleveland Cavaliers
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The Cleveland Cavaliers host the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night in what looks to be an intriguing matchup between the two teams at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse.

The Cavaliers are currently sitting third in the Eastern Conference with a 15-9 record and are coming off two convincing wins against Philadelphia and Orlando at home, and a loss on the road against the New York Knicks last night.

They are 7-3 in their last 10 games and 10-1 at home, this season. However, Cleveland is just 2-4 against Western Conference opponents, which may be the only chink in their armor as they head into this matchup.

The Lakers are Surging

While the Los Angeles Lakers have struggled to start the season, the team seems to have found their legs of late. Los Angeles heads into Cleveland as winners of 5 out of their last six games, including a massive victory against the Milwaukee Bucks on Friday night in Milwaukee. The Lakers are now 10-12, 8-2 over their last ten games, and are looking to add their 4th win in a row.

Game Odds and Prices

The game should be a hot ticket for fans in Ohio. Early BetMGM Ohio odds for the match have Cleveland a -4.5 (-105) favorite against Los Angeles (+4.5, -115), with the over/under at 224. Moneyline has the underdog Lakers paying +145 while it’s -175 to lay a wager on the Cavaliers.

Early money is siding on the Lakers, who have also seen their Championship odds reduced from a high of +7500 to just +5000 today. Interesting what a small winning streak will do to season futures odds.

Homecoming Game

Whenever Laker forward LeBron James returns to his native Ohio, it’s an event.  Hence why TNT is making it a nationally broadcast game as the first part of its Tuesday Night Double Header, which will feature the Dallas Mavericks against the Denver Nuggets as the second game.

An Ohio native, the Akron-born James was selected the first overall pick by Cleveland in the 2003 draft. James remained with the team until 2010 before leaving for the Miami Heat, and again returning in 2014 and leading the Cavaliers to their first NBA Championship in 2016. The Cavaliers have won seven Central Division titles, five Eastern Conference titles, and one NBA title with James on their roster.

On the other side of the coin. According to StatMuse, James has averaged 29.4 points, 7.3 assists, and 7.1 rebounds in 19 games against his former franchise. He put up 27 points, seven rebounds, and four assists in the November 6th matchup between the teams in Los Angeles, a 114-100 one-sided loss for the Lakers, who squandered a first-half lead and scored a season-low 16-points in the third quarter in defeat.

James is averaging 29.6 points a game over his last five contests (26.1 points per game for the season) while lately playing in the shadow of Anthony Davis, who was named NBA Western Conference Player of the Week earlier today.

Anthony Davis

Speaking of Anthony Davis. The Laker’s “other” superstar has been operating at a different level for a couple of weeks now. Davis put up his best games as a Laker yesterday, finishing with 55 points, 17 rebounds, and three blocked shots in the Lakers 130-119 win over the Washington Wizards.

The double nickel performance makes Anthony the first player since Patrick Ewing in December 1990 to score over 50 points, grab over 15 rebounds, and block more than three shots.