Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets Picks and Odds Dec 25
Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets Betting Preview
WagerTalk NBA handicapper Andy Lang offers his Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets betting preview on the NBA’s Christmas Day slate. At the time of posting, the Lakers are holding steady as 1.5-point home favorites over the visiting Nets, with the total sitting at 226 points.
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| Sat, Dec 25 | NBA Betting Notes |
|---|---|
| Point Spread: | Los Angeles Lakers -1 vs Brooklyn Nets |
| Total: | 226 Points |
| Game Time: | 8:10pm ET / 5:10pm PT |
| Arena: | Crypto.com Arena |
| TV: | ABC |
Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets Analysis
The Brooklyn Nets will battle the Los Angeles Lakers on Christmas day at the newly-named Crypto.com Arena. Both teams are dealing with major Covid and injury issues, similar to most teams in the association. The Nets have had their past two games postponed due to the leagues health and safety protocols, while the Lakers have been without a good portion of their squad due to Covid as well.
The Los Angeles Lakers are 16-17 and coming off a blowout loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday night. This was their fourth consecutive loss pushing them below .500 on the season. They will now have to play without Anthony Davis as he will be spending at least the next four weeks rehabbing a knee injury.
Los Angeles has struggled on defense as they allow 112 points per game, 4th most in the league. On offense they play at breakneck speed mostly due to Russell Westbrook leading the charge. They rank #1 in pace while scoring 109.8 points a game.
Despite the recent Covid outbreak and injury setbacks, the Brooklyn Nets are in a good position after 30 games. They have the best record in the Eastern Conference at 21-9. The Nets last game was a week ago on Saturday, where they lost at home to the Orlando Magic by a final score of 100-93.
This Brooklyn team can obviously score with the best of them, but their big improvement since last season has been on defense. Last season they couldn’t stop a nose bleed and this year they are 5th in defensive rating. It looks like James Harden and Patty Mills will be a go for this contest, while Kevin Durant, LaMarcus Aldridge amongst others will be out for this game.
We basically have a pick em as the Lakers are favored by a point with a total of 226 points. This game won’t live up to its marquee billing as both teams will be missing key superstars. These teams have horrible ATS records, as both teams are overvalued publicly bet teams. The Lakers are a league worst 12-21 ATS, while Brooklyn isn’t much better at 12-17-1.
The Nets are going to be rusty after not playing in a week and not being able to practice. Los Angeles has been in horrible form recently, but will actually have more healthy players at their disposal. I’m going to ride with the Lakers in this game. The Lakers are in desperate need of a victory and if they can’t get this one at home, they might as well throw in the towel.
Official Play: Los Angeles Lakers -1.5
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Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets Preview from GoldSheet
First game for the freshly-minted Crypto.com Arena! Neither of these two teams in good shape right now, as Brooklyn is having massive problems getting enough healthy players to play its games, as Covid and a couple of injuries ravaged the roster this week.
The disjointed Lakers have lost 4 straight for the 6th time since LeBron James came to the team, twice the streaks have pushed to 5 games, and with Anthony Davis down with a sprained knee for at least 3 more weeks and several other support players also unavailable (Avery Bradley, Malik Monk, Bazemore, Reaves). San Antonio beat the Lakers 138-110 with Keita Bates-Diop (who?) scored 30 pts. against them (as many as he’d scored in the previous 6 games combined).
This was without doubt a look in the mirror moment for the depleted Lakers. Brooklyn has been off since Dec. 18 due to 3 straight Covid-related postponements. Fortunately for Net HC Steve Nash, James Harden, Paul Millsap and Bruce Brown are scheduled to clear quarantine in time for this game, and Kevin Durant and LaMarcus Aldridge have a shot. The visitor has won and covered 5 straight when these two have met, and like the Nets’ chances a lot better. Lakers 7-2 “under” last 9 and 8 of the last 12 between these teams went “under” as well.
Christmas NBA Stat Sheet
Each day, WagerTalk handicapper Ralph Michaels puts together his NBA Stat Sheet, which offers a head-to-head comparison for how teams are performing in a number of key areas heading into a game. Check out Saturday’s sheet, with notes on the Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets contest.
NBA Betting Tips
Kelly Stewart sits down with Tony Mejia to go over some NBA betting tips. Tony was a national NBA beat writer for CBS SportsLine from 2005-09 before transitioning into a role with Pro Basketball News. Tony shares some of the betting tips that he’s picked up over the last two decades while covering the NBA.
WagerTalk Live Odds Screen
WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the NBA point spreads, moneylines, first half lines and betting percentages for all of the Christmas NBA games, including this Los Angeles Lakers vs Brooklyn Nets showdown, from your desktop or phone.
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