Lakers vs Spurs NBA Odds & Expert Prediction for Friday Night.

Lakers vs Spurs NBA Odds & Expert Prediction for Friday Night

Written by on December 7, 2018

Lakers-Spurs used to be one of the West’s best rivalries in the NBA, but it’s two very different franchises now. The Lakers are ascending with LeBron James, and the Spurs are descending without Kawhi Leonard. L.A. opened as a slight dog in the Alamo City on Friday’s NBA Odds.

How to Bet Lakers vs Spurs NBA Odds & Expert Prediction for Friday Night

Season Series

Somehow, this already is the last meeting between the teams.

San Antonio leads 2-1. The teams played in Los Angeles on 10/22, with the Spurs taking a 143-142 OT shootout. San Antonio led by as many as 18, but a 3-pointer by LeBron James in the closing seconds of regulation knotted the game at 128 and sent it into overtime. Patty Mills hit a go-ahead jumper with 6.8 seconds left in OT as the Spurs rallied from down six in the extra session. LeBron had 32 points, 14 assists, and eight rebounds. LaMarcus Aldridge had 37 points and 10 rebounds, and DeMar DeRozan added 32 points and 14 assists for the Spurs.

On 10/27, the Spurs won 110-106 at home. DeRozan had 30 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists and the Spurs rallied in the fourth quarter, overcoming 35 points and 11 rebounds from LeBron. The Spurs’ first lead came at 93-91 with 10 minutes remaining.

The teams just played again Wednesday, and see below for that. The Spurs and Lakers have the two best overall winning percentages in NBA history. The Spurs have met the Lakers in the playoffs 11 times, more than any other team in the league.

Why Bet on LA Lakers?

The Lakers won their fourth straight on Friday, 121-113 over the Spurs. LeBron James poured in 42 points making 15-of-24 FGs and 9-of-13 FTs with six assists and five rebounds. James scored 20 of his 42 in the fourth quarter. James reeled off 14 straight points for the Lakers to bring the score from 91-85 in favor of the Spurs to 99-97 in favor of the Lakers just four minutes later.

From there, Kyle Kuzma, Lonzo Ball, and Josh Hart combined to score the Lakers’ next 13 straight points before James added five more points in the final 1:13 — including a 29-foot step back 3 — to salt the win. Lonzo Ball had 14 points, nine assists, four rebounds, three 3-pointers, and two steals in a season-high 40 minutes. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope came off the Lakers’ bench on Wednesday for 12 points, seven rebounds, two 3-pointers and one steal in 28 minutes.

Josh Hart started the second half of Wednesday’s game, but foul trouble plagued him and he finished with six points on 2-of-5 shooting (all 3-pointers) and one rebound. Brandon Ingram exited in the first quarter with a sprained left ankle and didn’t return. That’s why Hart got the second-half start.

After an official’s review, LaMarcus Aldridge was called for a flagrant foul 1 for sticking his foot on the spot where Ingram was going to land when he attempted a jump shot. Ingram, whose ankle had turned all the way to the floor when he landed, was on the floor in pain for a spell.

Not likely that Ingram plays Friday. He came into the night averaging 15.7 points and 4.2 rebounds on the season. Coach Luke Walton said he plans to stagger James’ and Ball’s minutes as much as possible so Los Angeles always has a steady ball handler on the court for as long as Ingram is out.

Why Bet on San Antonio?

Rudy Gay erupted vs. the Lakers on Wednesday with a season-high 31 points on 12-of-21 shooting, adding seven rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Gay hit 5-of-5 free throws with two 3-pointers in 35 minutes, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the Spurs from falling to 4-10 on the road this season. Gay was coming off a scoreless game vs. Utah. DeMar DeRozan led the Spurs with 32 points. LaMarcus Aldridge had 21 points and nine rebounds for the Spurs, who have lost seven of 10.

Dante Cunningham played 34 minutes Wednesday, scoring two points with eight rebounds, two steals, and one assist. Cunningham has the distinction of averaging 22.4 minutes but getting a mere 8.4% usage rate per game. That’s the third-lowest usage rate in the entire NBA and the lowest among players averaging at least 20 minutes.

Lakers vs Spurs should be a close one.

San Antonio currently ranks first in the NBA in fewest turnovers, coughing up 12.4 per game. The Spurs have turned the ball over 10-or-fewer times in eight games this season. They are shooting at a .380 (232-610) clip from behind the arc this season, which ranks fourth in the NBA. The Spurs have finished a season shooting over 40 percent from the 3-point line just once in team history (40.7 percent in 2000-01).

The Silver and Black currently have three qualified players shooting above 40 percent from behind the arc – tied for the most in the NBA. That’s Gay (50.0 percent), Davis Bertans (43.9) and Bryn Forbes (42.1). Gay is third in the league.

Lakers vs Spurs NBA Betting Trends

  • Over is 4-1 in the last 5 meetings
  • Under is 21-10 in the last 31 meetings in San Antonio
  • Underdog is 6-0-1 ATS in the last 7 meetings
  • LA is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games
  • LA is 4-1 SU in its last 5 games
  • The total has gone UNDER in 8 of LA Lakers’s last 9 games
  • San Antonio is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games
  • San Antonio is 1-4 SU in its last 5 games
  • The total has gone OVER in 5 of San Antonio’s last 5 games

Expert NBA Betting Prediction for Lakers vs Spurs

With Ingram likely out, take the Spurs. Hard to sweep a home-and-home.