Lucky Lefty's bracket in our March Madness competition is insanely good...like 99th percentile good 👀

Return Of The King

After a long, hectic weekend of March Madness, it's time to check-in on the NBA. LeBron will return to his old stomping grounds tonight and looks to lead the struggling Lakers to a much needed win. LAL is 3-7 in their last 10 games, and currently tied with New Orleans for 9th place in the West 😳

• This squad that many hoped could contend for a championship may fail to even make the play-in tournament, as the Spurs are only three games behind in 11th

• The Lakers are still refusing to punt on the season, and are hopeful that Anthony Davis will return for a potential postseason run

Meanwhile, Cleveland is attempting to steer clear of the East's play-in tournament, with the surging Raptors hot on their heels for the 6th seed. The young Cavs have shown their resiliency all year, navigating through costly injuries 👇

• Cleveland's All-Star center Jarrett Allen has been sidelined for the past seven games with a fractured finger

• Sexton played in 11 games before hurting his knee

• LeVert has played in the last four games after missing almost of month of the season

Lakers vs. Cavs Betting Preview (subject to change)

• Spread: Cavs -6

• Moneyline: Cavs -255 (bet $255, win $100), Lakers +210 (bet $100, win $210)

• O/U: 223.5

LeBron Is Carrying LA

Despite LeBron's brilliance this season, LA has consistently looked like a below average team, and their 24th ranked offense and 18th ranked defense backs it up 😬

• The Lakers have failed to win back-to-back games since January 7

• After an inspiring win in Toronto where Russell Westbrook finally showed up, it was more of the same disappointing play in Washington

• The Lakers couldn't contain Kristaps Porzingis down the stretch and fell to the 30-40 Wizards

LeBron was unsurprisingly transcendent in the disappointing loss, dropping a cool 38-10-6. He passed Karl Malone for the No. 2 spot on the all-time scoring list, and now has his sights set solely on Kareem 👑

• LeBron is playing around 37.0 MPG, his most in the past five seasons

• He's averaging 35.4 PPG, 8.9 RPG and 5.9 APG in his last eight games 😳

Overcoming Adversity

While Allen is hoping to be back manning the middle come playoff time, it's clear that Cleveland will need to rely heavily on its offensive centerpiece, Darius Garland. Garland has taken a noticeable leap this year, and has thrived with an increased workload in the face of the Cavs' litany of injuries ⭐️

• Garland has been on an absolute tear in his last eight games, averaging 25.4 PPG and 11.6 APG

However, no star can win by themselves, and other Cavs will need to step up in Allen's absence. Fortunately, Cleveland possesses a deep pool of young talent and veteran experience surrounding Garland 💪

• Evan Mobley is one of the best rookie defenders in recently memory, and is currently the odds-on favorite to win ROY

• Offseason acquisition Lauri Markkanen has been heating up of late -- he recently joined LeBron and Kevin Love as the only Cavs with 30 points, 10 rebounds and 5 threes in a game

• Kevin Love himself has enjoyed a resurgent season coming off bench, averaging 13.7 PPG and 7.3 RPG in just 22.3 MPG

For My Parlay Gurus

I'm betting on the Cavs to defend home court vs. the Lakers because, quite frankly, they're a better team with a more established identity. I do think LeBron will continue to show out, especially in front of the Cleveland crowd, so I'm adding his points prop over to my parlay 👇

• Cavs -6 : -110

• LeBron James over 30.5 points: -110

$100 on this bet would win you $264 -- if we hit, make sure you email [email protected] for $100*. First come, first serve 😉

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