NBA Playoff Schedule 2020: Saturday's Game Time, TV Info, Odds and More

The Eastern Conference Finals matchup has been set. The Boston Celtics and Miami Heat will go head-to-head with a spot in the NBA Finals on the line. Miami beat the Milwaukee Bucks in five games in the second round, while Boston outlasted the defending champion Toronto Raptors in a seven-game series that concluded Friday night.

However, there are still four teams battling for spots in the conference finals in the West. The Los Angeles Lakers have a 3-1 lead over the Houston Rockets, and the Los Angeles Clippers are up 3-2 over the Denver Nuggets. An all-L.A. conference finals may look likely to take place, but anything could still happen.

On Saturday, the lone NBA playoff action will be a Game 5 matchup between the Lakers and Rockets. Los Angeles will be looking to end the series, while Houston is aiming to stave off elimination after losing the past three games.

Here's everything you need to know about Saturday's contest, along with current NBA title odds.

Saturday Schedule

Game 5: No. 4 Houston Rockets at No. 1 Los Angeles Lakers (-6.5), 8 p.m. ET, ESPN

Odds obtained via FanDuel

NBA Title Odds

Los Angeles Clippers: +180 (bet $100 to win $180)

Los Angeles Lakers: +190

Boston Celtics: +380

Miami Heat: +440

Denver Nuggets: +6500

Houston Rockets: +8000

Odds obtained via FanDuel

Saturday Preview

The box score told the story in the Lakers' Game 4 win over the Rockets, a 110-100 victory that increased their series lead to 3-1. Los Angeles out-rebounded Houston 59-33, outscored it in the paint 62-24 and outscored it on fast breaks 19-2. The Lakers never trailed, led by as many as 23 points and closed out the win despite the Rockets playing better in the fourth quarter.

It's a textbook example of what makes Los Angeles so tough to beat. With a pair of star players in Anthony Davis (29 points in Game 3) and LeBron James (16 points, 15 rebounds and nine assists), it's been a title contender all season. And it hasn't panicked despite trailing in each of its first two playoff series this summer.

The Lakers lost Game 1 of their first-round series to the Portland Trail Blazers and then won four straight games. They again fell behind 1-0 to the Rockets, and they have since won three in a row and are a victory away from getting back to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2010, when it won its most recent NBA title.

And even though Los Angeles has played well, it's still not content.

"Obviously, we've got to be better," James said, according to Field Level Media (h/t ESPN). "We got to close out games the right way. We get a big lead, we've got to be able to continue to defend and to continue to put the pressure on their defense and not allow them to get back in the game like we did."

Houston also has areas in which it needs to improve. However, the difference is that if the Rockets don't, their season could be coming to an end, potentially as soon as Saturday.

In Game 3, James Harden shot 2-for-11 from the field, including 1-for-6 on three-pointers. But with him and Russell Westbrook in the backcourt, Houston has the talent to at least make this series interesting, if not come all the way back.

"We know we're in a big hole now, but the next game is the game we've got to win," Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni said, according to the Associated Press (h/t ESPN). "We'll go out, and if we lay it on the line like the way we did in the fourth quarter, we'll be fine."

Each of the past three games in the series has been decided by a maximum of 10 points, so it's possible that Game 5 could also be competitive down to the wire. And with the Rockets facing elimination and the Lakers hoping to advance, the stakes are even higher.