Looks like I’ll have to make a different French Open finals betting pick. Thanks, Serena.

I picked the Lakers to win the NBA finals, but it won’t be easy. The Magic opened their meetings with Boston and Cleveland on the road, and came away with a win to steal homecourt advantage. This takes pressure off them, because you lose the first game, the second game virtually becomes a must-win. They also have won their last two trips to Los Angles, but they’re still a 6-point favorite at the Staples Center tomorrow night according to NBA Finals odds. 

The Lakers have won eight of their 10 playoff games at home, where the supporting cast plays much better, and it doesn’t become a shotfest from Kobe Bryant. The Lakers will have to do a better job on the Magic’s three-point gunners, who shot 42.9% from long distance in a 109-103 victory in Los Angeles in January. Dwight Howard went off for 25 points and 20 boards, but the Lakers and their NBA odds stand a much better chance of winning if they can keep the likes of Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu and Rafer Alston quiet. 

No one, myself included, have given the Magic much credit during the playoffs. Think that’s not fueling them? 

NBA championship odds pick: Lakers to win, but not to cover