MENU
The Portland Trail Blazers play the Los Angeles Lakers at the Staples Center on Wednesday, 11/14/18.
This is the third meeting between these two teams this season with the Blazers winning on opening night 128-119 and the Lakers exacting revenge 114-110, in their second meeting in Portland.
Statement Wins
The Portland Trail Blazers are picking up where they left off last season. The Blazers finished with the 3rd best record in the Western Conference last season and have opened the 2018-19 campaign with a 10-3 record. Portland has won four games in a row heading into this contest and three of those wins came over the Milwaukee Bucks, Los Angeles Clippers and Boston Celtics.
Portland ranks 8th in the league in points scored at 115.8 points per game and they also own the 5th best scoring defense in the league at 106.2 points per contest. The Blazers lead the league in rebounding at 52.2 caroms per contest. However, they rank 27th in assists with 20.4 dimes per night.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Los Angeles Lakers 11/14/18
Moneyline Odds: Blazers +130, Lakers -150
Odds from gtbets as of 11/14/18
New Defensive Identity
The Lakers’ poor start to the season was attributed to the team playing very poor defense. The Lakers have a deep and talented offensive unit that have been able to put a lot of points on the scoreboard. However, their inability to stop their opponents from scoring their own points saddled the team as they struggled to close out games or keep big leads. Enter Tyson Chandler.
Los Angeles is 7th in the NBA in scoring at 116.2 points per game and they are 5th in the league in assists with their 26.1 dimes per contest. Los Angeles is also 7th in field goal percentage but only 17th in three point accuracy. The Lakers’ achilles heel is defense as they allow 115.5 points per game, ranked 26th in the entire league.
Who Wins?
The Lakers lead the all-time series against the Blazers 119-106 but the Blazers won 16 in a row before the Lakers finally ended the losing streak last November 3rd. These teams have played each other already twice this season in Portland and as we said earlier, the Lakers took the last meeting 114-110 to end Portland’s 16 consecutive wins over them.
The Blazers have won four straight games and are 4-1 SU in their last 5 games played. Portland is also 3-1 SU in 4 road games played so far this season. The Lakers have won three in a row and are also 4-1 SU in their last five games played. Los Angeles is only 4-3 at the Staples Center this season but they have won two in a row at home heading to this contest.
The Blazers beat the Lakers in their first meeting by putting up seven more three pointers than the Lakers and making six more triples than the Purple and Gold. What helped them get more shots was the fact that they controlled the boards.The Blazers outrebounded the Lakers 60-53 including 14-8 on the offensive boards.
But the Lakers boast of a new defensive identity behind new acquisition Tyson Chandler. Chandler has been a difference maker for Los Angeles on the defensive end, helping them win at least two games with key defensive plays. Chandler should be the difference maker for the Lakers in this game.
As for Portland, the key should be Damian Lillard who is questionable for this game with a knee injury. Should Lillard miss this game, then it’s a no brainer we’re picking the Lakers. If he plays, the Lakers will still be favored because we don’t know if he’s going to be in 100% shape and Portland needs him to be 100% to deal with a deep Lakers’ unit. With uncertainties surrounding Lillard,
We’re picking the Los Angeles Lakers to beat the Portland Trail Blazers on 11/14/18.
Other Bets To Make
Portland is 9-3 ATS in their last dozen games after a two-days rest. The Blazers are also 6-1 ATS in their last 7 games against Western Conference teams and 4-0 ATS in their last four games overall. The Lakers meanwhile are 4-9 ATS in their last 13 Wednesday games and 2-5 ATS in their last 7 against teams from the Northwest Division. Los Angeles is also just 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games played.Head to head, Portland is 23-8 ATS in their last 31 meetings against Los Angeles and the road team is 16-5 ATS in the last 21 meetings between the Blazers and Lakers.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Los Angeles Lakers 11/14/18
Spread Odds: Blazers +3 (-109), Lakers -3 (-109)
Odds from gtbets as of 11/14/18
These trends mean nothing without Damian Lillard and even if Lillard plays, most of these trends are from the pre-LeBron era. Portland and Los Angeles are 1-1 in the King James era. This should be a close game if the Blazers are complete and in such games, I like rolling with the home team.
Prediction: Lakers -3
The under is 7-5-1 in the Lakers’ 13 games this season and the under is also 4-2-1 when the Lakers play at home. As for the Blazers, the total has gone under in 7 out of their 13 games played this season. The under is also 6-4 in the last 10 meetings between the Blazers and Lakers.
Portland Trail Blazers vs Los Angeles Lakers 11/14/18
Over/Under Odds: Over 227 -109, Under 227 -109
Odds from gtbets as of 11/14/18
Lakers are a high scoring team that plays little to no defense. However, since Tyson Chandler arrived, the purple and gold have allowed an average of 100.67 points per game in three games. The Blazers meanwhile boast of the 5th best scoring defense in the league. The trends also point to under. Lillard may or may not play and that’s a factor too. There are too many signs.
Prediction: Under 227
Miami Heat vs Milwaukee Bucks 04/19/2023 NBA Odds and Prediction
New York Mets vs Los Angeles Dodgers 04/17/2023 MLB Preview and Prediction
Minnesota Twins vs New York Yankees 04/14/2023 MLB Preview and Prediction
OKC Thunder vs New Orleans Pelicans 04/12/2023 NBA Play-in Tournament Odds and Prediction
