Los Angeles Lakers vs. Golden State Warriors Predictions, Picks, Odds

Michael Crosson Sports Betting Expert

4 minute read

Nationally televised NBA action will resume on Saturday night with a heavyweight Western Conference showdown between the Los Angeles Lakers and Golden State Warriors. Coverage begins from Chase Center at 8:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

SCORE PREDICTION

Warriors 114, Lakers 104

BEST BETS

Warriors -6.5 (-110) at BetMGM

LOS ANGELES LAKERS VS. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS PREDICTIONS

After finishing ninth in the West with a record of 39-33 SU last year, Golden State bounced back with an excellent start to this season, as the Warriors opened with an impressive 18-3 SU and 15-5-1 ATS run – with 14 of those victories coming by double-digits.

The last few weeks have been relatively shaky for Golden State though, considering the Warriors are just 23-12 SU and 14-18-3 ATS across their last 35 games – despite getting tagged as favorites in 27 of those contests.

On the other hand, Los Angeles stumbled out to a frustrating start to the year, as the Lakers kicked things off with a lackluster 10-11 SU and 7-14 ATS skid – which was primarily chalked up to growing pains due to the groundbreaking acquisition of Russell Westbrook.

The Lakers have maintained a similarly deficient through February too though, considering L. A. is just 15-19 SU and 16-18 ATS across their last 34 games – despite getting tagged as favorites in 22 of those matchups.

I’ll back Golden State here, as the Warriors are 9-2 SU across their last 11 games, while scoring a lofty 113.1 PPG during that timeframe – likely presenting a steep uphill battle for a Lakers squad that’s averaging just 107.4 PPG offensively across their latest 5-9 SU skid.

LOS ANGELES LAKERS VS. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING ODDS

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LOS ANGELES LAKERS VS. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING RESOURCES

• Matchup: Pacific
• Date: Saturday, February 12, 2022
• Venue: Chase Center
• Location: San Francisco, California
• TV-Time: ABC - 8:30 p.m. ET
• Injury Report

LOS ANGELES LAKERS BETTING ANALYSIS

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

• SU: 26-30
• ATS: 24-32
• O/U: 31-24-1

Hovering below .500 is a disappointment for this new-look Lakers’ squad regardless of the circumstances, 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 already missed 17 games this season – while Anthony Davis has missed 21.

Despite their shortcomings, the Lakers rank ninth in the West with a record of 26-30 SU, making them the caboose of a tight cluster containing the Nuggets (30-24), Timberwolves (29-26), and Clippers (27-30). There’s still plenty of time for the Lakers to turn things around and push for higher seeding; they just need to get healthy first, and ultimately, shoot the ball better, considering L. A. ranks 23rd in offensive efficiency and 11th in scoring (1.057 OE, 110.9 PPG) – which doesn’t bode well for a squad that also ranks 16th in defensive efficiency (1.072 DE).

GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING ANALYSIS

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

• SU: 41-15
• ATS: 29-23-4
• O/U: 22-33-1

After last year’s mediocre 39-33 SU regular-season showing, Golden State returned seeking immediate vengeance to kick off the new season, as the Warriors opened with wins in 18 of their first 20 games – with their only two losses across that span coming by slim margins of four points or less.

Golden State has primarily leaned on defense since that point, as the Warriors enter Saturday riding a relatively lackluster 23-12 SU stretch, while scoring just 108.7 PPG and allowing 103.8 PPG during that span. Golden State’s mantra has slightly altered since the return of Klay Thompson though, highlighted by the Warriors averaging 113.1 PPG offensively across their latest 9-2 SU stretch.

LOS ANGELES LAKERS VS. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS HEAD-TO-HEAD

The Lakers won two-of-three regular-season meetings against Golden State last year, with the first and third matchups soaring over the total at an average of 226.5 PPG – while the second stayed under at a score of 117-91. The most recent matchup between these teams took place back on opening night of this season though, which resulted in another high-scoring victory for the Warriors (121-114).

KEY PLAYERS TO WATCH

• LAL: LeBron James - SF (29.1 PPG, 7.7 REB, 6.5 AST)
• LAL: Anthony Davis - PF (23.5 PPG, 10 REB, 2.9 AST)
• GSW: Steph Curry - PG (25.7 PPG, 5.4 REB, 6.4 AST)
• GSW: Andrew Wiggins - SF (18 PPG, 4.3 REB, 2.2 AST)

LOS ANGELES LAKERS VS. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING CONCLUSION

After posting back-to-back losses to the Bucks and Blazers, the Lakers hit the road for Saturday’s matchup as seven-point underdogs against the Warriors at Chase Center – marking the sixth time L. A. has been an underdog across their last nine games.

I’ll lay the points with Golden State here, as the Lakers sit 5-9 SU and 7-7 ATS across their last 14 games, while averaging just 107.4 PPG offensively during that timeframe – setting the stage for a tough road matchup against a Warriors squad that’s scored 120+ PTS in five of their last nine contests (116.1 PPG).

LOS ANGELES LAKERS VS. GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS BETTING TRENDS

• The total has gone OVER in five of the last seven Lakers' games.
• The Warriors are 2-6 SU in their last eight matchups against the Lakers.
• The Lakers are 2-6 SU in their last eight games.
• The Warriors are 9-2 SU in their last 11 games.

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