Things haven't been going so smoothly for the Bucks, who just recently lost Brandon Jennings for four to six weeks with a fracture in his left foot. The Bucks lost 106-80 to Portland in their first game without Jennings, and will also be without Carlos Delfino and Corey Magggette tonight. Looking at the NBA spreads for tonight's game, the oddsmakers have the Lakers favored by 12-points over the Bucks at home.
In the Bucks' most recent lost to the Trail Blazers, they shot just 38% from the field, and connected on just 28% from the 3-point line. With the size that the Lakers have down low, if the Bucks want any chance of winning this game, they have to make their jump shots to keep the Lakers from clogging up the middle. John Salmons really played a nice game against Portland, scoring 23 points on 8-13 shooting. Keyon Dooling added 12 points, and Drew Gooden and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute each had 10 points off the bench.
The Bucks come into the game averaging just 91 points a game, but they have played solid defense up to this point, and if they want any chance of winning tonight, they have to bring it on that side of the floor. The problem is the Bucks don't have the size to match up with the Lakers' big men, and are just 3-10 on the road this season.
The Lakers could help the Bucks out by looking past them and focusing on their upcoming Christmas day showdown with the Miami Heat, but even if the Lakers don't bring their best game, it might not even matter against a depleted Bucks team.
It will be interesting to see if the Lakers use Bynum tonight, as he complained about his knee being sore both after the game on Sunday and yesterday at practice. The Lakers are 4-0 ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
