The Indiana Pacers'(12-8) take on the Los Angeles Lakers (14-9) in the In-Season Tournament Championship Saturday in Las Vegas. Tip-off to win the inaugural NBA Cup is set for 8:30 p.m. ET (ABC) from T-Mobile Arena. Let’s analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Pacers vs. Lakers odds and make our expert NBA picks and predictions.
Season series: First meeting; Split 1-1 last season
The Pacers landed a 128-119 upset as 5.5-point underdogs of the Milwaukee Bucks Thursday to advance to the title game. PG Tyrese Haliburton had 27 points and 15 assists, and C Myles Turner delivered 26 points with 10 boards. The Pacers lead the NBA in scoring (128.4 points per game) with the highest-paced 103.6 in the league.
The Lakers cruised 133-89 over the New Orleans Pelicans Thursday for their 2nd-highest scoring output of the season — and easily covering as 2-point favorites. They’ll need to match that effort to stave off the hard-charging Pacers. F LeBron James had 30 points, 8 assists and 5 boards in just 23 minutes.