The Los Angeles Lakers (14-4) visit the Philadelphia 76ers (12-6) Wednesday for a 7:30 p.m. ET game at Wells Fargo Center. Below, we analyze the Lakers-76ers NBA odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
Apparently, someone in Cleveland’s front office got a little too chirpy about LeBron James’ buzzer-beating miss at the end of the third quarter of the Lakers’ 115-108 win over the Cavaliers Monday because The King scored 21 of his 46 points in the fourth.
It’s a moment that pretty much sums up how Los Angeles has been playing in recent weeks as its only loss since Jan. 8 was a game the Golden State Warriors stole with a fourth-quarter comeback. The Lakers have covered the spread in six of their previous eight games.
The 76ers were demolished 119-104 Monday by the Detroit Pistons as 5-point road favorites. Leading scorer PF Joel Embiid missed the game due to a back injury.
Embiid is an early candidate for Defensive Player of the Year and his absence loomed large over a 76ers team ranked fifth in defensive rating. Prior to Monday’s loss, Philadelphia won three in a row, and five of six games, but is only 3-5 against the spread in its past eight games.
These teams split last season’s meetings overall and ATS but the 76ers were missing Embiid in both games and All-Star PG Ben Simmons missed the second game.
Lakers at 76ers: Odds, spread and lines
Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 1:25 p.m. ET.
- Money line: Lakers -160 (bet $160 to win $100) | 76ers +135 (bet $100 to win $135)
- Against the spread/ATS: Lakers -3.5 (-110) | 76ers +3.5 (-110)
- Over/Under: 221.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Lakers at 76ers: Key Injuries
Lakers
- PF Anthony Davis (ankle) probable
- SF LeBron James (ankle) questionable
76ers
- SG Seth Curry (ankle) probable
- PF Mike Scott (knee) out
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Lakers at 76ers: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Prediction
Lakers 112, 76ers 104
Money line (ML)
PASS.
Against the spread (ATS)
Whether the Lakers front office and C Marc Gasol’s agent specifically discussed this game or not this is essentially the type of game for which he was hired.
Gasol’s teams are 9-6 vs. Embiid and the 76ers, which counts the Toronto Raptors’ epic seven-game series win over Philadelphia in their 2018-19 title season.
Embiid averages just 13.9 points and has shot less than 30% from the field in 10 of his 15 games against Gasol including an 0-for-11 performance last season.
We can assume the performances of LeBron and Davis has been up-and-down lately so expect a good game out of them in a national TV spot. We cannot assume the same of a 76ers team that’s played the 29th-toughest schedule. Embiid is in a negative-EV matchup and Simmons has occasional offensive clunkers.
GIMME LAKERS -3.5 (-110) for 1 unit.
Over/Under (O/U)
There’s inherent value in Under 221.5 (-110) because this is a national TV game between two of the elite teams in the NBA. More than 90% of the market is betting Over, according to Pregame.com, and bookmakers haven’t budged on the total.
This tells me they are OK taking Over action in Lakers-76ers. I lean UNDER 221.5 (-110) for a quarter-unit.
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Also see:
- Lakers 10-game road win streak is a great sign for their repeat hopes (LeBron Wire)
- Doc Rivers, Sixers preparing for first matchup with LeBron James, Lakers (Sixers Wire)
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