The Luka Dončić revenge game on Tuesday was one of the most special and successful moments for the Los Angeles Lakers, in all facets. Dončić scored 19 points and added 15 rebounds and 12 assists, his first triple-double in Los Angeles. And in the fourth quarter, it was LeBron James’ time to shine. The greatest 40-year-old in NBA history did what he does best, scoring 16 points on seven-for-nine shooting in the final frame to spearhead a 107-99 victory.
James hasn’t been affected by Dončić’s arrival; in five games alongside his new co-star, he’s averaged 24.0 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 6.8 assists per game, not too far off of his season stats of 24.7 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 8.7 assists per game. Depending on how the Lakers finish the season, he has an outside shot at a record-extending 14th All-NBA First Team nod.
Los Angeles will take on the Minnesota Timberwolves, who currently trail the LA Clippers by half a game for the sixth seed in the Western Conference, at 7:30 p.m. ET.
On DraftKings Sportsbook, the Lakers are 6.5-point favorites and the total is set for 229. Below, I’ve highlighted my prop bets centered around The King.
Best LeBron James Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
LeBron James U7.5 Assists (-145)
There has been a distinctive shift in Los Angeles’ philosophy over the last couple of games. Over Dončić’s first three games with the team, James took more touches and continued his on-ball dominance as Dončić got used to playing with the Lakers. But in his last two games, Dončić has led the team with 77.5 touches per game, 2.5 more than James, and dwarfing him in possession time, 6.9 minutes per game to 4.4. The Mavericks style of Luka-centric offense has made its way over to Southern California, limiting James’ upside as a playmaker. He’s recorded just eight total assists in his last two games, his least productive stretch of the season.
Plus, Minnesota has been excellent at defending opposing playmakers this season. For the season, the Timberwolves are allowing just 24.4 assists per game, the fifth-lowest in the NBA, and they’ve still been pretty stout even after losing four-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert four games ago. Since Gobert’s injury, Minnesota has conceded 25.5 assists per game, merely the 12th-fewest. Plus, shooting guard Anthony Edwards is questionable with calf soreness after sitting out for much of the fourth quarter and overtime in the Timberwolves’ incredible comeback against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday.
LeBron James First Three Point Field Goal Attempt Result – Made (+120)
Since the start of February, James has been on an absolute tear from beyond the arc. Across that span, he’s made 46.0% of his tries from deep, the ninth-best accuracy among 91 players who have played at least eight games this month and attempted at least five three-point attempts per game. Since Dončić’s arrival, James has gotten 6.0 open or wide-open three-point attempts per game, an uptick of 0.9 threes per game from his season-long average. The Slovenian’s playmaking brilliance has resulted in some of the easiest looks of James’ career. 86.7% of James’ three-point attempts playing alongside Dončić have come with at least four feet of space, and for the season, James has hit such shots at over a 40% clip. Dončić has already assisted James 12 times in his five games with the team.
Plus, although it’s a small sample size, Minnesota has allowed opponents to shoot the sixth-best three-point percentage in the league since Gobert’s injury. Some of it might be fluky opponent shooting luck, but shooters are held to 3.5 percentage points worse than usual from beyond the arc with the Frenchman as the closest defender. Rookie Jaylen Clark, who has stepped into the starting lineup in Gobert’s absence, and 2023-24 All-Defense honoree Jaden McDaniels both allow opponents to shoot a higher percentage from deep than Gobert does.
