Lakers vs. Warriors Picks, Predictions, Odds

Michael Crosson Sports Betting Expert

3 minute read

First Round | Second Round
Eastern Conference | Western Conference
NBA Championship Betting Trends

The NBA Playoffs resume on Tuesday night with Game 1 of a highly anticipated Western Conference Semi-Final matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors. Coverage begins from the Chase Center in San Francisco at 10:00 p.m. ET on TNT.

LOS ANGELES LAKERS vs. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING PREDICTION

Neither of these teams had homecourt advantage in the opening round of the playoffs, as the Lakers drew the second-seeded Grizzlies after finishing 7th in the West with a record of 43-39, and the Warriors drew the third-seeded Kings after finishing 6th in the conference with a record of 44-38. However, the oddsmakers still showed a great deal of respect for both squads in the pre-series betting market, and rightfully so, as the Lakers (+110) managed to close out Memphis in just six games, and the Warriors (-250) topped Sacramento in seven.

The Lakers originally appeared to draw the tougher opponent of the two, as the Grizzlies coasted to the second-best record in the conference while ranking Top 5 in the league in net rating (+3.9 NetRtg). It turns out, though, Sacramento was the far more dangerous opponent, as the Kings stretched the series to seven games and went to halftime of Game 7 leading Golden State by a score of 58-56, in turn, giving the Warriors a legitimate scare prior to running away with a 20-point victory down the stretch.

For obvious reasons, the Warriors are far more dangerous than your average six-seed, but prior to their first round matchup against Sacramento, plenty of question marks still surrounded their ability to win big road games, especially given their lack of homecourt advantage, highlighted by Golden State posting records of 33-8 at home and 11-30 on the road during the regular season.

Fortunately, though, concerns surrounding Golden State’s inability to win on the road won’t be a factor in Games 1 and 2 of this series, as the Warriors now have the advantage of playing the first two matchups in their home building, where they rank 5th in the entire league in net rating (+7.7 NetRtg).

There’s no denying the fact that L. A.’s first round win over Memphis was an impressive feat, but for a variety of reasons, I’m still not quite ready to buy into a Lakers’ squad that ranked just 19th in offensive rating during the regular season (114 ORtg), and stayed true to that number in the opening round of the playoffs as well (112 ORtg).

The Lakers appear to be peaking at the right time, currently ranked 2nd in the entire league in net rating since the All-Star Break; however, L. A. ranked just 26th in three-point attempts per game and knocked them down at the sixth-worst clip during the regular season (31 3PA, 35% 3P), which certainly doesn’t bode well heading into a series against a Warriors’ squad that leads the league in long-range attempts per game and also ranks Top 10 in three-point percentage (43 3PA, 39% 3P).

Score Prediction: Warriors 116, Lakers 107
Best Bet: Warriors -4.5 (-110)

Take GSW!

BET NOW!

LOS ANGELES LAKERS vs. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING ODDS

LOS ANGELES LAKERS vs. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING RESOURCES

Date: Tuesday, May 2, 2023
Venue: Chase Center
Location: San Francisco, California
TV-Time: TNT, 10:00 p.m. ET
Matchup
Expert Picks

NBA Finals Betting Odds

LOS ANGELES LAKERS vs. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING STATS

Los Angeles Lakers
SU: 48-41
ATS: 44-43-1
O/U: 45-42-1
PPG: 117.2
OPPG: 116.6

Golden State Warriors
SU: 48-41
ATS: 43-46
O/U: 49-40
PPG: 118.9
OPPG: 117.1

Straight Up (SU), Against the Spread (ATS), Over-Under (O/U)
Points Per Game (PPG), Opponents Points Per Game (OPPG)

LOS ANGELES LAKERS vs. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING TRENDS

• The Lakers are 4-2 ATS in their last six games.
• The total has gone UNDER in four of the Lakers' last five games.
• The Lakers are 11-3 SU in their last 14 games.
• The total has gone UNDER in four of Golden State's last six games.
• The Warriors are 4-1 SU in their last five games.
• The Warriors are 14-2 SU in their last 16 home games.
• The Lakers are 5-2 ATS in their last seven matchups against Golden State.
• The Lakers are 10-5 SU in their last 15 games against Golden State.
• The Lakers are 1-4 ATS in their last five road games.
• The Lakers are 5-15 SU in their last 20 road games against Golden State.

Michael Crosson

Michael Crosson began his time at VegasInsider as a freelance NBA writer back in 2019 while he continued to study Psychology and Biology at James Madison University. Following his graduation in 2021, Michael joined the team full-time, and he's been with VI ever since. Michael still writes NBA, NFL, and MLB for VI, as well as gambling industry news. He's also become a crucial part of our editorial production team. More from Michael Crosson