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The New York Knicks head to Hollywood to face the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday at the Staples Center.
New York has been free-falling in the standings as they have lost eight games in a row. The Lakers meanwhile, continues to play without LeBron James who is out for the fifth straight game with a groin injury.
Knox A Silver Lining For Knicks
This has been a forgettable season for the New York Knicks who continue to play without star Kristaps Porzingis who is out with an ACL injury. But if there is a silver lining to their season, it’s rookie Kevin Knox who was named as the Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month. Knox averaged 17.1 points per game and made 25 three pointers last month to pace all East rookies. Knicks coach David Fizdale hopes Knox is going to continue to improve moving forward.
The Knicks are ranked 22nd in the league in scoring at 107.6 points per game. They are 17th in rebounding at 44.9 points per game and dead last in assists at 19.9 dimes per contest. New York is allowing its opponents to score 115.9 points per game which is the fourth worst scoring defense in the NBA.
New York Knicks vs Los Angeles Lakers 1/4/19
Moneyline Odds: Knicks +265, Lakers -330
Odds from bet365 as of 1/4/19
Fortunes Have Changed
The Los Angeles Lakers have seen their fortunes change with LeBron James sidelined with a groin injury. James has missed four games already and the Lakers are 1-3 without him. King James is expected to miss two more weeks and if that isn’t bad enough, second leading scorer Kyle Kuzma may be out with a lower back injury which he suffered in their last game.
The Lakers are ranked 8th in team scoring at 113.0 points per game this season. Los Angeles is the 9th best rebounding team in the league at 46.6 boards per contest and they are also the 14th best passing team at 24.5 assists per game. The Purple and Gold are allowing an average of 111.3 points per game which is 18th among 30 NBA teams.
Who Wins?
The Knicks are 1-9 SU in their last 10 games played and are 5-17 SU on the road this season. The Lakers are 6-4 SU in their last 10 games and are 13-7 SU at home this season. Head to head, the Knicks are 7-3 SU in their last 10 games against the Lakers.
The Lakers are 1-3 without LeBron James and they could very well be without Kyle Kuzma in this game. Los Angeles is also missing Rajon Rondo so that’s already three starters from their opening day roster sitting on the sidelines watching this game. Outside the three though, Los Angeles still has plenty of scorers in Ingram, Hart, Caldwell-Pope and Stephenson. No question Lonzo finds them if they are open but the question is if they can hit their shots. They usually shoot better at home so here’s hoping that the Lakers won’t misfire.
There isn’t much to talk about the Knicks really. They appear to be looking ahead at the draft lottery already and given their record right now, that may be their best option. Tim Hardaway and Emmanuel Mudiay are having good scoring seasons but outside the two, the Knicks have difficulties getting consistent points elsewhere. The Lakers are undermanned but the Knicks have played really bad.
We’re picking the Los Angeles Lakers to beat the New York Knicks on 1/4/19.
Other Bets To Make
New York is 16-20-2 ATS this season and the Knicks are 10-11-1 ATS on the road this season. The Lakers are 17-21 ATS on the season and Los Angeles is 9-11 ATS at home so far this year. Head to head, the Knicks are 6-4 ATS in their last 10 games versus the Lakers.
New York Knicks vs Los Angeles Lakers 1/4/19
Spread Odds: Knicks +7.5 (-109), Lakers -7.5 (-109)
Odds from gtbets.eu as of 1/4/19
The Knicks are 2-9 ATS in their last 11 games after scoring 100 or more points in their previous game. New York is also 0-5 ATS in their last five games against the Pacific Division and 1-6 ATS in their last seven games overall. The Lakers are 6-2 ATS in their last 8 games after an SU loss, 4-1 ATS in their last five games after an ATS loss and 3-0-1 in their last four home games against teams who have a road winning percentage of below .400. Los Angeles is very at a big disadvantage without LeBron and Kuzma (if he doesn’t play) but they still have enough to beat the Knicks.
Prediction: Lakers -7.5
The over is 21-17 in the Knicks’ season. New York has seen the over hit in 14 out of 22 road games played. The total has gone in 23 out of the 38 games played by the Lakers. The under is 14-5-1 in Los Angeles’ home games this year.
New York Knicks vs Los Angeles Lakers 1/4/19
Over/Under Odds: Over 224.5 -109, Under 224.5 -109
Odds from gtbets.eu as of 1/4/19
Los Angeles is likely going to play without their top two scorers. The Knicks are 22nd in the league in scoring and have struggled to find consistent scorers outside Hardaway. This would have easily been a high scoring affair without the injuries on both sides but such won’t be the case on Friday.
Prediction: Under 224.5
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