San Antonio Spurs vs LA Lakers: Prediction, Starting Lineups, Odds (1/25/23)

LeBron continued to build his case as the greatest player in NBA history, breaking the 40-point mark against the stingy Clippers defense and inching towards Kareem scoring record. It wasn’t enough to get the win, but seeing LeBron still play at an elite level in his age is a sight to behold. The Spurs on the other hand are a much younger and inexperienced team that are in a full-blown tanking. Can the Lakers get back on track against a middling Spurs squad?

San Antonio Spurs vs LA Lakers Betting Odds

Oddsmakers certainly think so as they opened the Lakers as a -6.5 favorite on their home court. Bettors have backed them as well, taking them up to -7 as of writing. This movement is a good indicator that LeBron James will suit up, as well as Anthony Davis, but I would wait for their confirmation. They certainly have advantages on both ends of the court against a hobbled and reeling Spurs unit, a team that is giving themselves their best chance of the first pick of the NBA Draft.

As for the total, points are expected to be scored at a blistering pace as oddsmakers opened the number at 242.5. Bettors are in agreement, backing the over up to 243.5 with indicators signaling that it will continue to climb. This is always a cause for concern when the Lakers are involved as they are one of the more anemic scoring units in the league with poor perimeter shooting. It has steadily improved, but still a poor shooting unit nonetheless.

San Antonio Spurs vs LA Lakers Prediction

The Pick: Pass, too much injury report uncertainty

With so many key players on the injury report and no indication of any confirmation anytime soon, I will pass on this game as I do not want to get burned with last second news right before tipoff. Anthony Davis is Probable and could potentially be on restricted minutes even if he is good to go, while LeBron is Questionable after taking on a heavy load against the Clippers last night and will be on zero rest.

Should either one of them suffer from limited production due to their various injuries and limited rest, the Lakers offensive production takes a major drop off as they have been the leading catalyst for the Lakers. They lack a serious depth with only Russell Westbrook providing starting levels worth of production as their key sixth man but even Westbrook can shoot the team out of a game with his sporadic play and head scratching decision making.

Lucky for the Lakers is that this matchup is against the Spurs who are desperately trying to end their season early and continue their rebuild. Even just one of Lebron or Anthony Davis could be enough for them to get past San Antonio but their chances of covering still remain bleak. A major reason why I am passing as I just do not trust either unit to build on any sort of consistency as they have lacked that aspect all season long.

Betting Trends

• Spurs are 2-5 in the last seven meetings against each other
• Over is 9-3-1 in the last 13 meetings in Los Angeles

Key Matchups

Can the Lakers contain the Spurs’ best scorer in Keldon Johnson?

Keldon Johnson vs Lakers interior defense

Since the injury to Devin Vassell, the Spurs have leaned heavier on Keldon Johnson who has developed into a scoring threat in his own right. His usage will be relied heavily once again as the Spurs have struggled to find consistent secondary scoring.

The Lakers have struggled on the defensive end, ranking well below average in Adjusted Defensive Efficiency per TeamRankings. A major indicator to a large total as points are expected to be scored at a fast pace on both ends.

This makes the status of LeBron or Anthony Davis crucial as both are great defenders in their own right with LeBron drawing Johnson as his assignment and Davis anchoring the paint. 

Verdict

This is a pass for me as there is too much injury report uncertainty on both ends for me to take a stand on either side.

San Antonio Spurs Starting Lineup

PG: Tre Jones
SG: Stanley Johnson
SF: Keldon Johnson
PF: Jeremy Sochan
C: Jakob Poeltl

LA Lakers Starting Lineups

PG: Dennis Schroder
SG: Patrick Beverley
SF: Troy Brown Jr
PF: LeBron James
C: Anthony Davis

Key Injuries

San Antonio Spurs Injuries: Romeo Langford (Q), Devin Vassell (O), Joshua Primo (O)

LA Lakers Injuries: Rui Hachimura (Q), Austin Reaves (O), Lonnie Walker IV (Q), Anthony Davis (P), LeBron James (Q)