It has only taken two games for a pair of Los Angeles Lakers not named LeBron James to make headlines. The Lakers will look to overcome a pair of critical absences as they face the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night. Los Angeles is still looking for its first win with LeBron in the fold after dropping a 124-115 decision to the visiting Houston Rockets on Saturday night – and the Lakers lost much more than the game, as point guard Rajon Rondo and Brandon Ingram were both suspended for their part in a melee involving Houston point guard Chris Paul. **video
San Antonio Spurs at Los Angeles Lakers (-1, 225)
QUICK-HITTER
The Lakers won't be confused with any of the top defensive teams in the league, and they still have a lot of work to do on that end of the court – particularly in the early going. Los Angeles is giving up a whopping 32.5 first-quarter points per game; only Minnesota, Utah, Sacramento and Dallas have been more generous. The Spurs won't light the world on fire offensively, but they've been a far more responsible first-quarter team so far this season, holding teams to just 22.5 points over the first 12 minutes. Not only do we like the Spurs to win the race to 20 – we believe there's a chance L.A. doesn't get there until the second quarter.
PREDICTION: San Antonio race to 20 points (-125)
HALFTIME BET
Having to do without Rondo and Ingram will force the Lakers into lineups that might not necessarily play to their strengths. Rondo was clearly the team's primary facilitator when he was on the court, as evidenced by his 21 assists through two games. His absence will force the Lakers to either rely on LeBron to set up his teammates more, or give more time to Lonzo Ball with precious little point guard depth behind him. San Antonio has limited opponents to 22 assists per game – 11th-fewest in the league – and having one fewer distributor to worry about makes the Spurs a good bet to lead at the half.
PREDICTION: San Antonio +0.5 first-half spread (-110)
TEAM/PLAYER BET
The Spurs' team total (111) is a great choice by oddsmakers. San Antonio scored 112 points in a narrow season opening win over the Minnesota Timberwolves, but was held to 108 last time out against the Trail Blazers. It's notable that these teams are at complete opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of pace, with the Lakers leading the league at 112.0 possessions per 48 minutes and the Spurs dead last at 96.0. San Antonio will be better able to dictate the pace with Los Angeles down a pair of starters – and bettors shouldn't expect the Spurs to maintain their current 43.6-percent three-point success rate. We like the Under.
PREDICTION: San Antonio under 111 points (-120)
FULL-GAME SIDE
This game is a toss-up in the eyes of the books – but given the way these teams have been playing, and that the hosts suddenly face a depth challenge, it's hard to reconcile the Spurs as the underdogs despite having gone just 1-10 ATS in their previous 11 road games. The underdog has successfully covered in each of the last four meetings, and San Antonio has done well to take advantage of matchups with weaker foes, having gone 6-2 ATS in their last eight vs. teams with winning rates below 40 percent. Look for San Antonio to cover against the Lakers for the first time in their previous five head-to-head meetings.
PREDICTION: San Antonio +1 (-110)
FULL-GAME TOTAL
If you've been sticking with Over bets through the first week-and-a-half of the season, you're probably still stacking your bills right now. The Over is an incredible 27-12 through the first 39 games – and oddsmakers can't seem to make the totals high enough. But this week should see some regression on that front, and this game certainly fits that bill. The Lakers will struggle to maintain their early-season pace against a snail-like San Antonio team, and both teams are staring at shooting clawback (Los Angeles is making 48.2 percent of its attempts from the field.) We recommended the Under.
PREDICTION: Under 225 (-110)
