LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are still alive. And the Orlando Magic, Oklahoma City Thunder and Boston Celtics were all rolling. Close games are hard to find in these NBA playoffs. Entering Sunday, 19 of the first 26 games of the first round were all decided by at least 10 points. All four games on Saturday were double-digit decisions: Orlando beat Cleveland by 23, Oklahoma City beat New Orleans by 21, Boston beat Miami by 20 and the Lakers beat Denver in the “close” game of the day by
The 11-game losing streak the Lakers had to the Denver Nuggets is over, delaying the inevitable questions about LeBron's future.
Oklahoma City Thunder (57-25, first in the Western Conference) vs. New Orleans Pelicans (49-33, seventh in the Western Conference)New Orleans; Monday, 8:30 p.m. EDTBETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Thunder -4.5; over/under is 204.5WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: Thunder lead series 3-0BOTTOM LINE: The Oklahoma City Thunder look to clinch the series over the New Orleans Pelicans in game four of the Western Conference first round. The Thunder defeated the Pelicans 106-85 in the last matchup. Shai Gilgeous-A
Los Angeles Lakers (47-35, eighth in the Western Conference) vs. Denver Nuggets (57-25, second in the Western Conference)Denver; Monday, 10 p.m. EDTBETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Nuggets -7.5; over/under is 218.5WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND: Nuggets lead series 3-1BOTTOM LINE: The Denver Nuggets look to clinch the Western Conference first round over the Los Angeles Lakers in game five. The Lakers won the last meeting 119-108 on April 28 led by 30 points from LeBron James, while Nikola Jokic scored 33