LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and the red-hot Lakers host James Harden, Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers on Friday, with J.J. Redick’s squad looking to stay hot and Ty Lue’s Clips hoping to not slip into Play-In seeding.
The Sporting News has you covered with the latest odds for this Western Conference showdown and some best bets and player props from the BetMGM online sportsbook.
MORE: Buy tickets for Lakers vs. Clippers at the Crypto.com Arena
It’s an all-LA battle, with the fourth-seeded Lakers taking on the fifth-seeded Clippers. The Lakers have won four of their past six meeting with the Clips — will Luka make them even more superior than their crosstown rivals?
Let’s get to the odds for Lakers vs. Clippers at the Crypto.com Arena, then reveal our final score prediction and full betting recommendations.
Lakers vs. Wolves: Spread, moneyline, over/under
All odds and props are from BetMGM, an authorized gaming operator of the NBA.
- ATS: Lakers -3.5 (-105) | Wolves +3.5 (-115)
- Moneyline: Lakers -225 | Wolves +180
- Over/under: O 227.5 (-105) | U 227.5 (-115)
Lakers vs. Clippers best bets and final score prediction
The Lakers have been straight-up rolling with Luka in town, even though their prized new asset has been shooting just 38 percent in purple and yellow. The All-Star guard is making everyone around him better, and the chemistry has obviously already started to develop between him and LeBron.
Speaking of the modern GOAT, he sure seems motivated for a 40-year-old. LA has an NBA-best 15-4 record dating back to Jan. 15, and King James has his fingerprints all over that blistering run. Austin Reaves has been scorching, too — the Lakers’ No. 3 option has 75 points and nine treys over LA’s three-game winning streak.
MORE: Why did Dallas trade Luka? | Doncic’s contract projection in LA
The biggest advantage Redick’s squad has over Lue’s Clippers, though? Pace. The Lakers have been running like gazelles over these six weeks, with LeBron once again sitting among the leaders in fast-break points per game. Luka obviously didn’t make LA faster — but he certainly helps them initiate more transition buckets thanks to his high-IQ game and full-court vision.
The Clippers have lost six of their past 10 games, and they’ve even been letting teams like the Jazz and Bulls give them a run for their money. They got boat-raced 129-111 by the run-and-gun Pacers recently, and they got creamed 122-97 in their own building by the Lakers on Feb. 4 before Doncic even made his LA debut.
The Clippers don’t stand a chance of winning this game. Redick’s squad is too hot, too fast and too furious to lose to Harden and Kawhi at the Crypto. Don’t overthink this one.
FINAL SCORE PREDICTION: Lakers 122, Clippers 108 — The Lakers win and cover (-3.5), while the score goes OVER the projected total of 227.5.
Lakers vs. Clippers top player prop bet
Ivica Zubac, C, Clippers: OVER 10.5 rebounds (-110)
One thing the Clips have that the Lakers are missing right now is a stud center. Hornets’ big man Mark Williams almost joined LA at the trade deadline, but he wound up failing his physical and the trade got rescinded.
As a result, Bron and company have more of an “all hands on deck” rebounding situation, while the rival Clips have Zubac pretty firmly entrenched as their chairman of the boards. Zu has averaged 12.5 rebounds per game (RPG) on the season, and he has little to no competition for main-rotation big-man minutes.
Zubac has racked up 46 rebounds over the Clippers’ past four games (11.5 RPG), highlighted by 15-rebound games against the Pistons and Bucks. He should pretty easily tally 11 or more boards against smaller, weaker bigs like Jaxson Hayes and Jarred Vanderbilt. We’ll target this OVER up to -140.
