Tuesday NBA Best Bets: Mavericks (-5) Should Handle Free-Falling Lakers
It's hard to believe the NBA season is already entering the month of March, but, alas, here we are. For today's best bet, we head to the Western Conference, where the red-hot Dallas Mavericks should have their way with the free-falling Los Angeles Lakers.
Dallas Mavericks vs. Los Angeles Lakers, Total and Odds
Moneyline: Mavericks -190 | Lakers +155
Spread: Mavericks -4.5 (-110) | Lakers +4.5 (-110)
Total: Over 216.5 (-110) | Under 216.5 (-110)
NBA Championship Odds: Mavericks +4000 | Lakers +4000
All NBA betting lines and odds courtesy of BetMGM.
Dallas Mavericks vs. Los Angeles Lakers, News, Analysis, and Picks
The first and only meeting between these teams this season occurred on December 15 - a 107-104 Lakers victory. However, Dallas was without superstar Luka Doncic and I'm expecting a much different result this evening.
The Mavericks enter tonight winners of seven of their past nine contests, the latest an impressive 107-101 win over the Golden State Warriors - a game in which they trailed by as many as 21 points. Doncic continued his otherworldly play, scoring 30 plus points for the ninth time in 12 games, while newly acquired Spencer Dinwiddie notched his second consecutive 20 point performance.
Jason Kidd's squad has been fantastic against the number of late, covering in eight of their last nine games (34-26-1 overall). The Mavs have covered in 61.5% (8-5) of their games as a road favorite - a scenario they find themselves in tonight.
Perhaps the biggest reason for Dallas' success is their elite play on the defensive end. The team sits second in points allowed per game at 103.4 while ranking fifth in defensive efficiency.
Meanwhile, the Lakers are coming off a 123-95 blowout loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday, LA's fifth loss in their last six contests as they drop to a season-worst six games below .500.
It's difficult to see the results changing anytime soon, as the Lakers will continue to be without star forward Anthony Davis for the foreseeable future. LeBron James has done his best to keep LA competitive in Davis's absence (third in NBA at 29.0 PPG), but his supporting cast has left much to be desired. While James is expected to play he appears to be less than 100 percent. Outside of James, Frank Vogel's group has not had a player score 20 or more points in a game since February 8 versus the Milwaukee Bucks (Davis and Malik Monk). Secondary scoring will be even harder to come by against the Mavs' elite D.
In addition to their offensive struggles, the Lakers have been amongst the worst teams defensively, sitting 24th in points allowed (112.4 PPG). Then, there's LA's poor record against the spread, where they're 24-26 overall and 13-20 at home.
The Lakers are a mess right now and I don't see them having an answer for one of the league's hottest teams. Expect Doncic and company to toy with this LA squad and easily cover tonight's -5 spread in this sequel.
The Pick: Mavericks (-5)
All NBA predictions and picks are courtesy of SportsGrid.
