The Dallas Mavericks (24-17) go on the road to square off against the Los Angeles Lakers (20-21) on Wednesday. The Western Conference is extremely competitive halfway through the season. Dallas sits as the No. 5 seed, meanwhile, Los Angeles is in the 10th spot. The Mavericks are ranked seventh in the league in scoring (118.7), while the Lakers average 114.1 points per game, which is good for 19th in the NBA. LeBron James (ankle) is listed as questionable for Los Angeles, while Luka Doncic (ankle) is questionable for Dallas.
Tipoff is scheduled for 8:30 p.m. ET at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The Lakers are 4-point favorites in the latest Mavericks vs. Lakers odds via SportsLine consensus. The over/under for total points is 243.5. Before making any Lakers vs. Mavericks picks, you need to see the NBA predictions and betting advice from SportsLine’s advanced computer model.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past five-plus seasons. The model enters Week 13 of the 2023-24 NBA season on a sizzling 42-23 roll on all top-rated NBA picks this season, returning nearly $2,000. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Lakers vs. Mavs and just locked in its picks and NBA predictions. You can head to SportsLine now to see the model’s picks. Now, here are several NBA odds and betting lines for Mavs vs. Lakers:
Lakers vs. Mavericks spread: Los Angeles -4
Lakers vs. Mavericks over/under: 243.5 points
Lakers money line: Los Angeles -172, Dallas +144
LAL: The Lakers have hit the game total Under in 31 of their last 46 games at home
DAL: The Mavericks have hit the 1Q game total Under in 19 of their last 27 games
Lakers vs. Mavericks picks: See picks at SportsLine
Why the Lakers can cover
The Lakers have added D’Angelo Russell and Austin Reaves back to the starting lineup. Reaves is a crafty ball handler and three-level scorer. The Oklahoma product gets into the lane with ease and has a knack for drawing contact to get to the free-throw line. The 25-year-old averages 15.1 points, 4.2 rebounds, and 5.2 assists. In his last outing, Reeves finished with 15 points and seven assists.
Russell owns a smooth jumper on the perimeter with solid vision as a playmaker. The Ohio State product logs 15.4 points, 6.1 assists, and shoots 39% from beyond the arc. He’s dished out at least six assists in four of his last five games. On Jan. 13 versus the Jazz, Russell notched 39 points, eight assists, and went 6-of-11 from downtown. See which team to pick here.
Why the Mavericks can cover
Guard Kyrie Irving is an explosive ball handler and scorer who has the quickness to blow past defenders and is an acrobatic finisher around the rim. Irving averages 25.8 points, five rebounds and 5.4 assists per game. In Monday’s win over the Pelicans, he dropped 42 points, seven boards and seven assists.
He’s scored 33-plus points in five straight games. Forward Tim Hardaway Jr. is a nice perimeter asset for the Mavericks. He can score off the dribble or put the ball on the deck when needed. The Michigan product logs 18.3 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. Hardaway Jr. dropped 24-plus points in three straight games. In his last outing, he totaled 41 points and made nine 3-pointers. See which team to pick here.
How to make Mavericks vs. Lakers picks
SportsLine’s model is leaning Under on the total, projecting 237 combined points. The model also says one side of the spread hits well over 50% of the time. You can only see the model’s picks at SportsLine.
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