The Los Angeles Lakers finish their five-game road trip with the second leg of a back-to-back against the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday. The Lakers are coming off of yet another loss to the Knicks while the Pacers had Tuesday off after dismantling the Chicago Bulls on Monday.
LeBron James will be back in this game as he did not play against the Knicks on Tuesday as he was serving a one-game suspension for his role in the scuffle with Isaiah Stewart, who was suspended two games.
LeBron returning to the rotation is not doing much for the Lakers in terms of the betting lines as for the second straight night, the Lakers enter a game as the underdogs. Last night they lost but they at least covered. Can they win outright tonight?
Los Angeles Lakers vs Pacers odds, spread, over/under:
According to WynnBET, the Los Angeles Lakers are five-point underdogs in Indiana. They are +170 moneyline underdogs while the Pacers are -190 moneyline favorites. The over/under for the game has been set at 217.5 points.
The Lakers have the worst record against the spread in the NBA this season at 6-13 while the Pacers check in right around league average at 9-10.
Los Angeles Lakers vs Pacers prediction:
I have been hesitant to pick the Los Angeles Lakers in these prediction articles because I am not a huge believer in this team, especially with how they are playing right now. I am not going to simply pick the Lakers every time because this is a Lakers website and I want to make the fans happy.
That being said, I picked the team to cover last night and I think they are going to do the same thing against Indiana. I even like the moneyline odds at +190 as I think the Lakers are going to win this game outright. I would just stick to +5 to cover yourself, though.
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Sure, the Lakers are coming off of a back-to-back but LeBron James isn’t and the team is obviously different when he is in the rotation. LeBron is also the king of turning in big performances when eyeballs are on him and after the scuffle against Detroit, he is going to want to make a statement.
This is going to be a vintage LeBron James showing that will, at the very least, result in this game being close enough for the Lakers to cover. I think they squeak out a win.
I am taking Lakers +5 and over 217.5 points with a final score prediction of Lakers 112, Pacers 109.
Los Angeles Lakers vs Pacers TV channel:
This is not a nationally televised game and will be broadcast locally on Spectrum SportsNet.
Los Angeles Lakers schedule and upcoming games:
The Lakers will fly home tonight to spend Thanksgiving with their families before returning to action on Black Friday at home against the Sacramento Kings. The Lakers then have a rematch against Isaiah Stewart and the Pistons on Sunday.
The Lakers head up to Sacramento on Tuesday before getting two days off and playing the Los Angeles Clippers for the first time next Friday.