It’s been almost a month since the Lakers lost LeBron James and laid a beatdown on the Golden State Warriors in the same game. Since that time, Golden State has been on fire while the Lakers have won just five of 13 games. The Warriors ride a seven-game win streak into Hollywood tonight and are a 12-point favorite with the total at 232.5.
- The Warriors are 12-3 ATS in their last 15 games as a double-digit favorite.
- The Lakers are 7-1 ATS in their last eight games as a double-digit underdog.
- The total has gone OVER in four of the Warriors’ last five games (avg. combined score: 246.8).
Lakers vs Warriors Game Center
Injury Concerns for Los Angeles
Already dealing with the injuries to veteran leaders LeBron James and Rajon Rondo, LA was dealt another severe blow in its backcourt with the loss of sophomore Lonzo Ball for the next four to six weeks with a grade 3 ankle sprain.
This news should be very concerning to Lakers bettors as the team is now without the three guys who would normally be running the offense for them. The Lakers will be forced to call up a player from the G League for backcourt depth with these three stars out of the lineup and will be relying heavily on the inconsistent Brandon Ingram for more offensive touches.
Warriors Keep on Rolling
Everything is coming up Golden State as the teams enter the second half of the regular season. The defending champs have won nine of their last 10 and only got stronger with the addition of DeMarcus Cousins to the active roster over the weekend.
The Warriors are scoring an obscene 131.1 points per game in January – that’s 7.5 points per game better than the Houston Rockets for the top mark in the league. With that, the Warriors have a +19.2 point differential this month and are 6-3-1 ATS in their last 10 games.
My Pick For Tonight
Despite the high spread of 12 points, I still like the Warriors to cover tonight. As mentioned above, they are outscoring teams by an average of almost 20 points this month and will be looking to continue their dominance on the Western Conference’s biggest stage in LA.
Covering as a double-digit favorite is nothing new for the Warriors, who are 12-3 ATS in this spot in the last 15 games with the spread closing at -10 or higher.
The Lakers are decimated in the backcourt and for a team that likes to play with as much pace as they do, they will be sorely missing the ball distribution of Lonzo Ball combined with the playmaking ability of James and Rondo.
I also like OVER 232.5 in this one.
