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After LeBron James' signature over the summer, there seemed to be a good reason for the Los Angeles Lakers to be the big favorites in Las Vegas for the playoffs.
But after a 118-109 defeat against the modest Phoenix Suns on Saturday night, the view in Vegas is worse than ever.
The Lakers now have a plus-600 rating (a $ 100 bet would win $ 600) to qualify for the playoffs at the Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook, by far their worst side of the season. They are an amazing under-900 favorite to miss the post-season.
Los Angeles had over-240 to make the playoffs before Saturday's game and a minus-110 rating at the All-Star break.
The SuperBook opened the odds on the Lakers for the playoffs before the season with the yes strongly favored at under-450 (no to over-350). Although 59% of punters thought the James Lakers would miss the playoffs, over 83% of the money was on yes. This was heavily influenced by a bettor who bet $ 50,000 on a odds of less than $ 500, for a potential profit of $ 10,000.
The Lakers are 30-33 and 4½ behind the Los Angeles Clippers for eighth place in the Western Conference. According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index, the Lakers now have a 0.9% chance of playing in the playoffs.
James has reached the playoffs in 13 consecutive seasons. This season is the latest in a season where a team led by James has a record of less than .500 since the Cleveland Cavaliers finished their rookie season 35-47 in 2003-04.
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