Knicks vs. Lakers prediction: Jalen Brunson faces LeBron James
The Knicks continue their brutal West Coast swing Monday night in Los Angeles and face the Lakers with hopes of splitting the four-game NBA trip.
New York has dropped two of the first three games, capped off by a 144-122 loss to the Clippers on Saturday.
The Knicks allowed 77 first-half points as Los Angeles shot 57 percent from the floor and drilled 16 three-pointers in the win.
It was the second night of a back-to-back for the Knicks, who were coming off an impressive 17-point win at Phoenix in which Jalen Brunson scored a career-high 50 points.
He became the first player in Knicks history to score 50-plus points while making nine three-pointers.
Meanwhile, the Lakers are back home after an embarrassing loss at San Antonio on Friday. The Spurs, who broke an 18-game losing streak, entered the game as 7.5-point underdogs.
(10 p.m. ET, MSG)
The Lakers played without Anthony Davis (hip) and D’Angelo Russell (migraine), who are both listed as questionable for Monday’s game.
Los Angeles went 1-2 straight up and 0-3 against the spread on its three-game Texas road trip following its championship in the NBA’s inaugural In-Season Tournament.
The Lakers own a 9-2 mark at Crypto.com Arena this season, but have covered the spread just five times.
New York has won eight of 10 games this season coming off a loss, so the Knicks have done a good job of bouncing back.
Plus, they have been hot from beyond the arc of late, an area the Lakers have had trouble defending.
Let’s back the Knicks as an underdog against the Lakers on Monday.
Pick: Knicks +4.5 (-115, BetMGM)
