The basketball world will be focused on Staples Center on Thursday, as the Los Angeles Lakers (22-7) host the Brooklyn Nets (18-12) in one of the marquee matchups of the 2020-21 NBA season (1o p.m. ET on TNT). It’s time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Nets-Lakers prediction and pick.

Despite the unfortunate fact that 40% of the superstars in this potential Finals preview will be missing from action — Anthony Davis (Achilles) and Kevin Durant (hamstring) — the nationally televised showdown will feature plenty of star power, storylines, and scoring.

In fact, the game will put the league's most potent offense up against its stingiest defense. The Lakers rank no. 1 in Defensive Rating, while the Nets have the best offense in basketball since acquiring Harden.

The last time these teams faced off came on March 10 — one day before the NBA suspended its 2019-20 season following Rudy Gobert's positive COVID-19 test. Brooklyn escaped Staples with a W after Davis missed a three at the buzzer following a clutch Spencer Dinwiddie bucket.

A lot is different 11 months later. Steve Nash is now the head coach in Brooklyn, while both teams have undergone major changes and developments — titles, star acquisitions, injuries, viruses, etc.

Back to tonight: L.A. returns home after fending off the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center on Tuesday, as LeBron James dropped 30 points, 13 rebounds, and seven assists.

The Nets are coming off a thrilling comeback victory over the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. Brooklyn erased a 24-point deficit, largely thanks to 38 points and 11 assists from James Harden.

The Lakers have won eight of their past 10 games, while the Nets are riding a four-game winning streak.

Let's examine the odds and preview the matchup.

NBA Odds: Nets-Lakers Odds 

Brooklyn Nets +3 (-111)

Los Angeles Lakers -3 (-109)

Over 230 Points (-110)

Under 230 Points (-110)

Why The Nets Could Cover The Spread

The Lakers are 5-1 without Davis, but those wins have come against the Minnesota Timberwolves (twice), Oklahoma City Thunder (twice), Chicago Bulls, and Detroit Pistons, and only one of those victories came by double-digits. They needed OT to beat the Thunder in both instances and, two OTs to take down Detroit.

Even sans Durant, the Nets pose a far more formidable threat than those lottery teams.

KD leads Brooklyn in scoring (29 PPG), but Irving isn't far behind (28.3), while Harden is putting up 24.3 points and a league-leading 11.8 assists.

Brooklyn leads the NBA in points per game (121.7) and field-goal percentage (50.2). They rank third in three-point percentage (40.7) and fourth in assists (27.4). They've scored 136 and 128 points in the past two games without KD.

Irving missed Wednesday's game vs. Phoenix with lower back tightness, though he's listed as probable for Thursday. He dropped 40 points vs. the Sacramento Kings on Monday, and is easily hitting the 50/40/90 thresholds through 20 games (.534/.442/.918 splits).

The Nets were forced to go extremely small against Sacramento on Monday, starting Jeff Green at the center spot while bringing DeAndre Jordan off the bench. Against the Suns, they went back to a more traditional starting five. We know Nash and assistant coach Mike D'Antoni favor small-ball though, which they may be able to get away against L.A. without Davis.

Plus, the Lakers have struggled to protect the rim this season, and the absence of Davis only exacerbates the issue. Harden and Irving are two of the best rim attackers in the league, and they could live in the paint on Thursday.

As a team, Brooklyn ranks fifth in the NBA in triples made per game, while the Lakers rank 26th. Joe Harris, in particular, has been sweltering from deep. Over his past 10 outings, Harris is nailing 53.6% of his 6.9 three-point attempts per game.

Why The Lakers Could Cover The Spread

In all likelihood, Kyle Kuzma will start in place of AD. Once again, Kuzma, Dennis Schröder, Marc Gasol, Montrezl Harrell, and Talen Horton-Tucker will be asked to collectively pick up the scoring load in place of Davis.

The supporting cast did an excellent job against the Timberwolves, and the Nets don't exactly win games because of their defense. In other words: the Lakers will not struggle to score.

The Nets don't really guard anybody, evidenced by their bottom-five Defensive Rating. They surrender 117.9 points per game, the third-highest figure.

For Thursday's showdown, they don't seem to have any obvious candidate to check James. Andre Roberson was just signed and Bruce Brown, while good, is 6'4. Most likely, the Nets will throw some combination of Harris, Harden, and Green at LeBron. Barbeque chicken alert.

If the Nets throw doubles at James, expect Harrell to eat a little more tonight, especially when DeAndre Jordan is off the floor. The 2019-20 Sixth Man of the Year dominates undersized second-units.

For what it's worth, the Lakers did limit Harden to 36 points on 12-of-30 shooting combined over two matchups against the Houston Rockets early in the season using a combo of Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Alex Caruso, Wesley Matthews, and THT. But, considering Harden's effort level (or lack thereof) in those games, it may be worth nothing.

Nobody on the planet can stop Irving, but the Lakers' tenacious duo of Schröder and Alex Caruso are both capable of at least making him work. Preventing dribble-drives (as best they can) will be key, as Davis won't be there on the back-line.

Final Nets-Lakers Prediction & Pick

The Nets will miss Durant's defense and length more than his offense in this highly-anticipated affair. The Lakers' bigs will play well, and a newly-aggressive Schröder will score at least 20 points, somewhat negating Irving's impact. Brooklyn's top-line talent will keep this game close, but their inability to match up with James will cost them in crunch-time. In general, baskets will not be hard to come by, but the defending champs will make it just hard enough to secure the win and cover.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION & PICK FOR NETS-LAKERS:

BKN 117, LAL 122 (-3.3)

OVER 230