The Los Angeles Lakers (48-30) will visit the Oklahoma City Thunder (64-14) in the NBA tonight. Tipoff is set for 8:00 p.m. ET at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City. The game will broadcast live on NBA League Pass.
The Thunder are 9.5-point favorites over the Lakers on the spread (Thunder -9.5), with the over/under set at 230 total points. Oklahoma City is a -475 favorite to win outright, while Los Angeles is +350 to pull off the upset.
Let's get into my Lakers vs. Thunder predictions and NBA picks for Tuesday, April 8.
Lakers vs Thunder Prediction
My Thunder vs. Lakers best bet is on Los Angles to cover the spread, with the best line currently available at BetMGM. But as always, make sure to shop for the best line using our live NBA odds page.
My Pick: Thunder -9.5
Lakers vs Thunder Odds, Spread, Picks
| Lakers Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+9.5 -110 | 230 -110o / -110u | +350 |
| Thunder Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-9.5 -110 | 230 -110o / -110u | -475 |
- Lakers vs. Thunder spread: Thunder -9.5
- Lakers vs. Thunder over/under: 230 total points
- Lakers vs. Thunder moneyline: Lakers +350, Thunder -475
- Lakers vs. Thunder best bet: Thunder -9.5 (-110)
Los Angeles Lakers vs Oklahoma City Thunder NBA Preview
On Sunday, the Lakers were 10.5 underdogs in this spot vs. the Thunder and destroyed OKC with a barrage of shooting.
Now, with a back-to-back against the Mavericks on Wednesday in Dallas for Luka Doncic’s emotional return to his former team, Luka Doncic, LeBron James, Austin Reaves and Dorrian Finney Smith are questionable. Rui Hachimura is out.
There is a very strong chance the Lakers are resting guys before that game in Dallas. They got the signature win against the Thunder. Why give them more tape to study or more reps to boost their confidence? This line reeks of a halfway marker for all those guys being out, with the expectation that it jumps to 18.5 or higher if they all sit.
Some trends before the bet:
- The Lakers made 22 3-pointers vs. the Thunder, shooting the lights out on Sunday. Teams to make 20 or more 3s, even in this three-point era, who are dogs the next game are 72-113, 38.9% ATS since 2014-15.
- This is the second game in three days between the two teams; we call this a Duplex Spot. Teams in a duplex spot that lost as a favorite in the first matchup are 23-18 ATS.
So, this looks like a great spot for the Thunder. If the Lakers play all their guys tomorrow, it will be a great Thunder spot. If Luka, James, et al. are ruled in tomorrow, this line will probably move back to close to 10.5 or 11. I’d like OKC then.
But if the Lakers do what I expect and punt this game to get ready for Dallas, a higher-win probability game with more playoff implications in an emotional game that Luka will want to win very badly, then this line goes the other way and extends at least to 16.5 if not upwards of 20.
I’ll like the Lakers, then. It’s a letdown spot laying too many points for a team in OKC that has nothing left to play for and is literally just running out the clock before getting ready for the playoffs next week.
Beating the Lakers doesn’t increase or decrease their chances of playing them in the playoffs significantly. (A loss to them does make it slightly less likely they face each other in Round 2, as the Lakers would have a big edge for 3rd.)
The Lakers were in a similar spot weeks ago against the Nuggets. They put together a gameplan and beat the Nuggets, then came back in a banged-up spot at the end of a road trip, rested their legitimately banged-up and hurt guys, and still covered but lost.
As of 5 p.m. ET, the spread has fallen to Thunder -9.5, which indicates LeBron and Luka may be trending toward suiting up tonight. If that's the case, I recommend grabbing the best CLV available on Oklahoma City to cover the spread.
Lakers vs. Thunder Betting Prediction
- Thunder -9.5 (-110)
Thunder vs. Lakers Betting Trends
