Warriors-Lakers Game 6 Best Bets: Anthony Davis, Klay Thompson Props
From a side and total standpoint, I've been mostly wrong about this Golden State Warriors vs. Los Angeles Lakers 2023 Western Conference Semifinals matchup. I didn't think the Lakers stood a chance and clearly that was wrong.
I was gearing up to take the points with the Warriors then news broke they could be missing SF Andrew Wiggins. Instead of continuing to slam my face against a wall, I'm going to hit a couple of player props for Warriors-Lakers Game 6.
Lakers PF Anthony Davis points prop: 24.5
Wiggins' "questionable" status is the biggest injury news entering Warriors-Lakers Game 6. But, Davis exited Game 5 in a wheelchair after getting accidentally hit by Warriors C Kevon Looney's elbow.
AD occasionally goes missing offensively for the Lakers: Davis has scored fewer than 24.5 points in seven of his 11 games in these playoffs. There's a bigger chance of that happening after the Warriors roughed him up Wednesday.
The most shots Davis has attempted in this series is 19 in Game 1. Also, Davis is being guarded by one of the best defensive players in NBA history: Draymond Green. In Game 5, Davis was 3-for-8 from the field when Draymond was on him.
Warriors PF Draymond Green defends Lakers PF Anthony Davis during Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinals at Chase Center in San Francisco. (Noah Graham/NBAE via Getty Images)
Plus, if Wiggins plays less or misses Friday entirely, then we might see more of Looney. It'll be tougher for AD to get paint points with Looney and Green out there.
Davis has gone Under 24.5 points in five of his nine games vs. the Warriors this season, which includes this series. Perhaps AD is spending more energy on defense since Golden State has two of the greatest shoots ever.
BET: Lakers PF Anthony Davis UNDER 24.5 points (-120) at DraftKings Sportsbook
Warriors SG Klay Thompson point prop: 21.5
Golden State will need someone to step up and help Steph Curry out. Obviously, Klay is the most likely candidate but he's been awful over the past three games.
Thompson is averaging just 11.3 points per game on 29.7% shooting (33.3% from behind the arc) during that stretch. But, he is a big-game player and has earned the nickname Game 6 Klay.
Warriors SG Klay Thompson drives past Lakers PG D'Angelo Russell during the 4th quarter in Game 5 of the Western Conference Semifinal Playoffs. (Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
He's had several 30-plus-point efforts in playoff Game 6s over the years including multiple NBA Finals and Western Conference Finals games. Klay is getting a lot of good looks in this series and just not hitting shots.
More importantly, Lakers PG D'Angelo Russell has guarded Thompson for a majority of this series. Russell is one of the worst perimeter defenders in the NBA so Klay should continue to get good looks in Game 6.