Lakers vs. Bucks injury report, odds, spread: Milwaukee could be regular-season home underdog with Giannis Antetokounmpo in lineup first time since March 2018

One sporting event clearly stands out Thursday night as LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers visit Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks in what could be a preview of this summer's NBA Finals. The Bucks could be incredibly rare home regular-season underdogs as of this writing they are +1 on the William Hill Sportsbook NBA odds.

Again, with a spread this small it's quite possible Milwaukee is a favorite by the 7:30 p.m. ET tip on TNT. A few other sportsbooks out there do have the Lakers as 1-point underdogs. It will just depend on the betting action at William Hill where this number closes.

However, for the sake of argument let's say the Bucks stay as home dogs. They haven't been in that position in a regular-season game Giannis played in since March 25, 2018, when the Bucks were +2 against San Antonio and won 106-103.

Milwaukee has been a regular-season home dog twice since then:

• Oct. 29, 2018 – The Bucks were +2 and beat Toronto 124-109 with Giannis out in the NBA's concussion protocol.
• April 10, 2019 – The Bucks were +4.5 and lost to Oklahoma City 127-116 in the regular-season finale with Giannis out to rest for the playoffs.

William Hill lists the Lakers as +240 favorites to repeat as NBA champions and +120 to win the West again. Milwaukee is +650 to win it all and +300 in the East – behind the Nets (+125) since they acquired James Harden.

Thursday might be the last time the Lakers and Bucks meet before potentially the NBA Finals as they don't have a first-half matchup scheduled for Los Angeles and may not play there in the second half, either, with the shortened schedule.

The Lakers look to avoid their first two-game skid of the season as they were upset 115-113 at home Monday by Golden State, blowing a 14-point fourth-quarter lead. The Bucks also look to avoid their first two-game losing streak as they lost 125-123 in Brooklyn on Monday in a spectacular game. Khris Middleton missed a potential winning 3-pointer from the corner.

We should mention that the Lakers list LeBron James as questionable for Thursday, but James is given that status every game. No chance he sits this out for injury or rest reasons. LeBron is +800 to win a fifth regular-season MVP Award. Giannis is +450 to win a third straight.

The Bucks and Lakers split their 2019-20 season series with each team winning at home. Milwaukee has taken eight of the past nine at home vs. L.A. and covered five of the past six overall in the series. 

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