Portland Trail Blazers vs. Los Angeles Lakers Predictions, Odds, Picks

VegasInsider Staff Sports Betting Expert

5 minute read

Dec. 31, 2021

Michael Crosson
VI Betting Expert
VegasInsider.com

Score Prediction

Lakers 111, Blazers 108

Best Bets

Under 230.5 (-110) at DraftKings

Portland Trail Blazers vs. Los Angeles Lakers Predictions

After finishing sixth in the West with a record of 42-30 SU last year, Portland posted a similarly uneventful start to the new season, as the Blazers opened with a pedestrian 10-8 SU and 8-9-1 ATS stretch – despite getting tagged as underdogs in just four of those affairs.

The Blazers have been absolutely ravaged by health issues since mid-November though, considering Portland is just 3-13 SU and 4-12 ATS across the last 16 games – with ten of those SU losses coming by double-digits.

On the other hand, Los Angeles stumbled out to a disappointing start following the groundbreaking acquisition of Russell Westbrook, as the Lakers kicked things off with an underwhelming 8-9 SU and 6-11 ATS skid – despite being favored in over half of those matchups (10).

Los Angeles has maintained that same unsettling pace all the way through December too, as the Lakers are just 9-10 SU and 10-8-1 ATS across the last 19 games – but the oddsmakers still won’t give up on them, considering L. A. was favored in 12 of those affairs.

I’ll take the under here, as Portland and L. A. have both struggled at the offensive end recently, with the Lakers averaging just 106.8 PPG across their latest 1-6 SU skid – and the Blazers averaging just 105.4 PPG across their disappointing 2-8 SU run.

Portland Trail Blazers vs. Los Angeles Lakers Betting Odds

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Portland Trail Blazers vs. Los Angeles Lakers Betting Resources

• Matchup: Northwest vs. Pacific
• Date: Friday, December 31, 2021
• Venue: Crypto.com Arena
• Location: Los Angeles, California
• TV-Time: NBATV - 10:30 p.m. ET

• Injury Report

Portland Trail Blazers Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 13-21
• ATS: 12-21-1
• O/U: 15-18-1

After a disappointing first-round exit from last year’s playoffs, the Blazers kicked off this season on a relatively encouraging note, as Portland opened with a sturdy 10-8 SU run – which included tough victories over the Suns, Sixers, Bulls, Lakers, and Clippers.

Depth has always been an issue for this Portland squad though, and this season is certainly no different, considering the Blazers are just 3-13 SU and 4-12 ATS across the last 16 games, while averaging just 105.9 PPG across that window – which can be attributed to an injury report currently accompanied by C.J. McCollum, Jusuf Nurkic, Robert Covington, Ben McLemore, Cody Zeller, and others.

Los Angeles Lakers Betting Analysis

Straight Up - SU, Against the Spread - ATS, Over-Under (O/U)

• SU: 17-19
• ATS: 14-22
• O/U: 18-17-1

Regardless of the circumstances, hovering below .500 is still devastating for this new-look Lakers’ squad, but to be fair, they’ve been banged up from the start, so it’s tough to write them off completely, considering LeBron James has participated in just 24 games so far this season – while Anthony Davis has participated in 27, but AD will likely miss at least another month with an MCL sprain.

Despite their downfalls, the Lakers tread at seventh in the West with a record of 17-19, which lands them in the middle of a tight cluster including the Clippers (18-17), Nuggets (17-16), Mavericks (16-18), and Timberwolves (16-18). So, there’s still plenty of time for L. A. to separate from the pack and avoid the Play-In Tournament; they just need to get healthy first – and ultimately, shoot the ball better (1.037 OE, 34.6% 3FG).

The Blazers are 2-10 SU and 4-8 ATS across the last 12 games. (AP)

Portland Trail Blazers vs. Los Angeles Lakers Head-to-Head

The Blazers won two-of-three regular-season matchups against L. A. last year, with the first matchup going over the total set for Friday’s affair at a score of 115-107 – while the ensuing two events stayed under at an average of 201 PPG.

The most recent matchup between these teams took place in November of this season though, which resulted in an ugly, low-scoring victory for Portland during the absence of King James (105-90).

Key Players to Watch

• POR: Damian Lillard - PG (24.2 PPG, 4.1 REB, 7.3 AST)
• POR: Norman Powell - SF (18.4 PPG, 2.7 REB, 2.1 AST)
• LAL: LeBron James - SF (28 PPG, 7.2 REB, 6.8 AST)
• LAL: Russell Westbrook - PG (19.7 PPG, 8.1 REB, 8.3 AST)

Portland Trail Blazers vs. Los Angeles Lakers Betting Conclusion

After posting a third straight double-digit loss on Wednesday night (L, 120-105), the Blazers hit the road on New Year’s Eve as narrow road underdogs against the Lakers at Staples Center – despite L. A. sitting at 1-6 SU across the last seven games.

I’ll take the under here, as Portland and L. A.’s first meeting of the season resulted in an ugly low-scoring battle (105-90) – and recent performances give me no reason to believe that New Year’s Eve will unfold any differently.

Portland Trail Blazers vs. Los Angeles Lakers Betting Trends

• The Blazers are 2-10 SU and 4-8 ATS in their last 12 games.
• The Lakers are 2-7 ATS in their last nine games.
• The total has gone UNDER in four of the last five matchups between the Lakers and Blazers.
• The total has gone UNDER in four of the last six Blazers' games.

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