The Los Angeles Lakers (24-18) and Golden State Warriors (22-22) will meet in the NBA tonight. Tipoff is set for 8:30 p.m. EST at the Chase Center in San Francisco, California. The game will broadcast live on ABC.
The Lakers are 1-point favorites over the Warriors on the spread (Lakers -1), with the over/under set at 218.5 total points. Los Angeles is a -118 favorite to win outright, while Golden State is -102 to pull off the upset.
Let's get into my Lakers vs. Warriors predictions and NBA picks for Saturday, January 25.
Lakers vs. Warriors Picks, Prediction
Spread
With the Lakers laying a short price from -1 to -1.5, I'll look to bypass the point spread and play them on the moneyline.
Moneyline
After shopping around, DraftKings is offering the best price on a Lakers moneyline at -118.
Over/Under
I see no value in playing the total, considering that my model projects a total of 220.5, and the current market number is available at 218.5.
My Pick: Lakers Moneyline (-118)
Lakers vs. Warriors Odds
| Lakers Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-1 -110 | 218.5 -110 / -110 | -118 |
| Warriors Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+1 -110 | 218.5 -110 / -110 | -102 |
- Lakers vs. Warriors spread: Lakers -1
- Lakers vs. Warriors over/under: 218.5 total points
- Lakers vs. Warriors moneyline: Warriors -102, Lakers -118
- Lakers vs. Warriors best bet: Lakers ML (-118)
My Warriors vs. Lakers best bet is on Los Angeles moneyline at -118, with the best line currently available at DraftKings. But as always, make sure to shop for the best line using our live NBA odds page.
Lakers vs. Warriors Preview
The Lakers finally got a signature win on Thursday, blowing out the Boston Celtics 117-96. That victory marked the first time this season that Los Angeles defeated a team with a win percentage of .700 or higher. In hindsight, the spot was probably more favorable for the Lakers, considering that Boston was on its second leg of a back-to-back after playing an overtime game against the Clippers.
However, while a win is still a win no matter the circumstances, victories over the Celtics tend to carry more weight than victories over other teams. According to our Action Labs database, the Lakers have the best win percentage (15-6, .714) in the league when coming off a victory over Boston.
Thus, it's very plausible that we should expect some carryover into Saturday's contest against the Warriors. The betting market seems to agree with this sentiment, as we've seen Los Angeles flip from Lakers flip from a one-point underdog to laying as many as 1.5 points.
While it's always important to be cognizant of market moves, it's even more critical when an opening underdog crosses into the territory of a favorite. This season, teams in this spot are 38-18 on the moneyline for +9.69 units.
The Lakers won the first meeting this season against the Warriors with a 115-113 victory on Christmas Day. They managed to do so despite Anthony Davis, their best frontcourt player, playing only seven minutes after picking up an ankle injury in the first quarter.
Los Angeles still outscored Golden State 48-42 in the paint, and it was much more aggressive from the perimeter, attempting 42 3-pointers.
It's a bit of a surprise that Los Angeles ranks just 28th in 3-point attempts, considering its head coach, JJ Redick, is one of the best 3-point marksmen the game has ever seen.
Note that the Lakers hit 15 treys in the game against the Warriors, the same number of 3-point field goals they made in their victory over Boston. Interestingly, Los Angeles averages only 12 3-pointers per game, ranking 27th in that category.
If the Lakers can bring some of that aggressiveness from the perimeter into this game, their performance against the Celtics should only give them more confidence in their next challenge when taking on Golden State.
Lakers vs. Warriors Prediction
After giving my reasoning for the Lakers to win, I've identified one player's props that warrant consideration as part of a Caesars two-leg same-game parlay.
We're starting to see Lakers center Jaxson Hayes make some valuable contributions off the bench. The former eighth-overall pick has seen an uptick in his minutes over his last six games, averaging 17.8 per game—up from his season mark of 16.4.
The increase in minutes corresponds nicely with Hayes averaging 5.17 points over the six-game span, which should bode well for him to exceed his points prop of 3.5 (-142).
It's also worth noting that Hayes scored four or more points in his last three meetings against the Warriors, averaging 8.3 with a median of seven points.
Adding this player prop to our parlay gives us a nice boost on our odds up to +203.
Best Bet: Lakers ML (-118) at DraftKings
Same Game Parlay Picks
- Lakers Moneyline
- Jaxson Hayes Over 3.5 points
Parlay Payout: +203
Warriors vs Lakers Betting Trends
