Two wins through their first eight games isn’t how the Los Angeles Lakers envisioned their season starting. But there’s no time to sulk over the slow start with LeBron James’s former squad, the Cleveland Cavaliers, coming to town for an inter-conference battle.
The Lakers will have to get past the Cavs without Patrick Beverley, who was ruled out with a non-COVID-related illness.
Darvin Ham says both LeBron James and Anthony Davis will play today. He hasn?t decided who will replace Patrick Beverley in the starting lineup yet.
— Jovan Buha (@jovanbuha) November 6, 2022
Beverley is in his first season with the Lakers and has been a solid defensive presence. The 34-year-old ranks third on the team in Defensive Win Shares, with a 1.5 Defensive Box Plus/Minus Rating, as calculated by Basketball-Reference.
The Lakers don’t have an abundance of guards right now. Dennis Schroeder is out with a thumb injury, and Russell Westbrook has been relegated to a sixth-man role. That could necessitate James moving to the backcourt for Sunday’s matinee, although Darvin Ham is non-committal on the starters.
FanDuel Sportsbook has the Lakers priced as +5.5 home dogs against the Cavs, with the total set at 222.
