Lakers 116, Heat 98: AD, LeBron dominate in Game 1 as Heat lose two key starters

The Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat get us going with Game 1 of the 2020 NBA Finals on Wednesday night in the NBA bubble at 9:00 p.m. ET on ABC. LeBron James and Anthony Davis will be looking to capture the Lakers’ 17th championship all-time. Jimmy Butler will be looking to solidify his legacy by bringing another title to Miami. Here’s our DK Nation live blog, where we’ll be following all the action during Game 1, including stats, betting analysis and highlights. Stay tuned!

LAL-MIA Game 1 Final: 116-98 — The Lakers were down 13 points and it feels like a billion years ago. Los Angeles would go on to put in a dominating performance in Game 1, winning easily after shaking off the slow start. Davis finished with 34 points, 9 boards and 5 assists in the win. He’ll likely be the favorite for Finals MVP after this one. LeBron came close to a triple-double with 25-13-9. The Lakers ended up shooting just around 40% from downtown, which is crazy after they started so hot.

The big issue for the Heat is dealing with injuries to Dragic and Adebayo. We’ll have to monitor their statuses moving forward but if one or both are sidelined for Game 2 on Friday, this series might not go the distance. Jimmy Butler also turned his ankle a few times, but stayed in the game through the fourth quarter. All three won’t be 100% no matter what and it didn’t really look like the Heat were going to win Game 1 with all three healthy.

So a quick betting recap. The Lakers covered the 4.5 point spread easily and won on the ML at -195 and the majority of the handle and betting percentages. The under actually held on to hit at 214 total with the line set at 217.5. The blowout and injuries likely had a big thing to do with that, so it’ll be interesting to see how the lines look for Game 2.

Update, 11:33 — The Lakers pulled their starters up by 17 with under 1:30 left in the fourth quarter and this one is all but over. AD should finish as the top scorer with 34 points and LeBron will finish one assist shy of a triple-double, which could tilt some bettors if they had that action.

Injury update — The Heat just announced that Dragic and Adebayo won’t return. Dragic has the foot injury and Bam is dealing with a shoulder strain. We know that Dragic needs an X-ray and it’s unclear if Adebayo will be ready for Game 2. If the Heat are missing both players, this series could be over fast. Miami will need Kendrick Nunn, Tyler Herro and Kelly Olynyk to step up big time to keep the Heat in the series.

Update, 11:14 — The Heat went on a run and the Lakers lead is down to 23 points. We also have word from Chris Haynes of Yahoo Sports that Dragic is receiving and X-ray on his left foot, which probably isn’t a good sign. Kendrick Nunn, Kelly Olynyk and Andre Iguodala are getting a lot of run with all the injuries.

Injury update — Bam Adebayo is now injured, dealing with a shoulder injury that forced him to go to the locker room. So now Dragic and Adebayo are out for the Heat at the moment and Jimmy Butler is dealing with an ankle injury. The Lakers are still up by 20+ and it’s unclear if Bam will be able to return. Things couldn’t be going worse for Miami right now.

Update, 10:49 — Dragic appeared to land awkwardly on his foot in the first half and that’s likely the cause for the injury. He’s had foot issues in the past, so it may not be good. I can’t see why it would be a precaution, the Heat are basically down 1-0 in the series already and we haven’t even played the fourth quarter. The Lakers have built up a 30+ point lead right now. It’s pretty ugly.

Update, 10:38 — Dragic is doubtful to return to Game 1 vs. the Lakers due to a foot injury. That’s why Herro started the second half and that’s also part of the reason why the Heat are down by 22 right now. Things aren’t looking great for Miami. Here are some more details on Dragic and what to expect the rest of the way.

Update, 10:32 — So this is a bit surprising but Tyler Herro started the second half for Goran Dragic. We don’t know if Dragic is hurt or if the Heat just want to lose by more points. Herro was -30 in the first half. It’s probably because the Heat need to shoot their way out of a hole and can play small ball a bit. IT’S A BOLD MOVE COTTON, LET’S SEE IF IT PAYS OFF.

Live lines at halftime — Here are the lines on DKSB at halftime:

Lakers ML: -1667
Lakers -14.5 on the spread
O/U is 218.5

So the Heat are getting 14.5 points at halftime down 17, so if you think there’s some type of run coming from Miami .... go nuts! But don’t, don’t do that. The O/U only went up 1.0 point from the original number after 113 points were scored in the first half. This is probably because the Lakers could go up by 20-30 points and sort of take the foot off the gas. Still, there’s some value there. Miami will have to chuck to get out of the massive hole.

Second Quarter Recap — So yeah, this is more like what we expected to see. The Lakers are up by double-digits, 65-48 at halftime, and are absolutely dominating the Heat right now. It’s not even close. Miami can’t even compete on defense and are just bricking shot after shot after shot. The Heat ended up shooting 43% in the half after starting 75% from the floor. Give credit to the Lakers intensity on defense.

As if things couldn’t get any worse, Jimmy Butler got hurt at the end of the half but stayed in the game. We’ll see if he is able to come out for the second half. Let’s take a look at some splits.

Jae Crowder had the first field goal and was +1200 with 10% of the handle and 8% of the bets in that market on DraftKings Sportsbook. Davis is leading all scorers with 18 points and at +110 had 11% of the handle and 8% of the bets to lead the game in scoring. It looks like Lakers spread and ML bettors are going to leave tonight richer as well. Plus, the over of 217.5 is on pace to get smashed after 113 points were scored in the first half.

Update, 10:04 — We’ve got a challenge! Which gives us a chance to take in this second quarter. The Lakers are out to a 10-point lead at 57-47 and it’s looking like this one may not be all that close tonight? It’s not even halftime, I know, but it feels like that early run from Miami was the best we’ll see. I don’t think the Heat can stop the Lakers, to be quite honest with you, sir. Frank Vogel is burning his challenge early on trying to get Jimmy Butler T’d up for some elbow on a layup attempt? Butler sort of threw an elbow on a drive, it’s hard to tell when you speed it up in real time. Wait, it’s a no-call on Danny Green and the Lakers have the ball? Okay.

Update, 9:55 — The Lakers have built up their biggest lead of the night, 49-43 over the Heat in the second quarter. L.A. is shooting an icy hot 60% from downtown and AD has 14 points to lead all scorers. It’s not that Miami has gone cold or anything, the Heat just regressed back to the norm and aren’t playing good defense.

Update, 9:48 — Tyler Herro doesn’t have the yips anymore. He looked a little off on his first couple shots and then got one to fall. Herro’s up to 8 points, 3 boards and 2 assists early on and is getting comfortable. Miami is back in the game with a 43-41 lead at the break. Jimmy is also cooking with 12 points. I’ll admit I wasn’t crazy about Herro’s over of 15.5 points, which I’m regretting currently. I WAS however on the O2.5 3-pointers made prop, which he’s one trey away from hitting. It’s about balance.

First Quarter Recap — Wow. What a first quarter. The Heat were up 23-10 and the Lakers finished on a 21-5 run to take a 3-point lead after the first. The story has been KCP, who has 10 points early on. Anthony Davis has 11 points to lead all scorers. The Lakers went on a big run to help anyone who bet the first-quarter spread of -1.5. Butler and Crowder each have 9 points for the Heat. Again, shoutout to anyone who got the Lakers at +3.5 after that 13-point deficit.

Update, 9:30 — Well, that was fast. The Lakers went on a mini-run thanks to a few 3-pointes from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and the score is 25-18. So if you were able to get the Lakers at that +3.5 number, good on you, you go Glen Coco! Imagine betting on the Lakers -5 or -4.5 and then magically getting them at +3.5 after 8 minutes into Game 1. Feels good, man.

Update, 9:25 — Sooooo, the Heat are up by 13 points, it’s 23-10. Should we be worried about the Lakers? Is it too early to be worried about the Lakers? Heat in 4? Jimmy Butler can’t miss, Miami is shooting 75% from the floor but it’s pretty early. The live line as of now is Lakers +2.5 ..... Uhhhh, gimme some of that action, amirite? No way the Lakers just take this L before the first quarter is over.

Update, 9:18 — Bam Adebayo is off to a quick start with 6 points and 3 rebounds with the Heat up 16-10 at the first commercial break. The first quarter spread was Lakers -1.5, so the Heat with the points there is holding up so far. Miami has done a good job defensively and the Lakers look out of sync, which is something we’ve seen before in Game 1. The Heat opened at +5 and were +4.5 before tip-off.

Update, 9:14 — Jimmy Butler just drained a 3-pointer on the Heat’s third possession and hits his over of 0.5 3-pointers for tonight. Chaaaaaaaa-ching. AD with a few field goals early on as well.

Pre-Game pick — So I’ve backed the Lakers to win this series in six games. I’m also a coward and just don’t want to really take the Heat to win it all knowing the Lakers could obliterate that sentiment. So I’m going to take the Heat and the points in Game 1 tonight. This definitely won’t backfire and the Lakers definitely won’t win by double-digits. Nope. No way.

Pre-Game news — Dwight Howard is reportedly going to stay in the starting lineup for the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 vs. the Heat, per Shams. Howard played well in the final two games of the conference finals. At $5K in the DK Showdown, Howard will be a trendy value play yet again.