Filip Tomic
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It’s always an intriguing matchup whenever Luka Doncic and his Mavericks take on LeBron James and his Lakers. Dallas won the first 2 regular-season meetings so Los Angeles will be out for revenge to ensure they avoid the sweep. I’ve spiced things up with a Mavericks vs Lakers Same Game Parlay as tip-off is set for 8:30 pm ET on ABC. You can also check out our NBA predictions for tonight’s massive 10-game slate.
Lakers -3 (-110)
LeBron James over 1.5 made threes (-142)
Luka Doncic over 8.5 assists (-128)
Same Game Parlay odds: +439
Los Angeles Lakers -3 over Dallas Mavericks (-110)
It feels like we have 2 different Lakers teams this season. One that is a dominant 14-7 SU at home and another that struggles on the road and has just 6 wins in 20 games. I’m hoping we get to see the former tonight as they take on a very strong Dallas Mavericks team at Crypto.com Arena. Dallas has won both meetings so far this season by 2 and 3 points, so everything is pointing to another close outcome. LeBron and company will be full of confidence heading into this one after their 112-105 victory over Oklahoma City.
In their last 3 games, they’ve limited opponents to just 32.8% efficiency from downtown, which is quite the improvement from their season average of 37.6%. Anthony Davis can be the X-Factor here, as he’s averaging 23.5 points and 12 rebounds per game in the 2 meetings while shooting over 61% from the field. Dallas isn’t really equipped to handle opposing centers on the inside, so if AD can follow up his 27-point and 15-rebound performance against the Thunder with a similar game here, the Lakers should be just fine. I’m taking LA to cover the spread.
Read our full Dallas Mavericks vs Los Angeles Lakers predictions
LeBron James over 1.5 made threes (-142)
LeBron has dealt with an ankle injury for most of the season so far and he’s once again on the injury report as questionable to play here. I do think he will suit up as the Lakers had a day to fully recover after Monday’s win over Oklahoma City. James was his usual self in that game, scoring 25 points on 60% from the field and 50% from downtown. His efficiency from three has dropped a little in the first half of January, but I’m expecting that to even itself out in the coming games.
LeBron just loves to compete against the Mavs, as he’s knocked down 4 and 3 threes in the last 2 meetings. Dallas ranks only 14th in opponent three-point percentage this season, allowing 36.4% of makes. With Grant Williams, Derrick Jones Jr. and Dante Exum all out of the rotation, they might be short of players capable of stepping in front of James.
Luka Doncic over 8.5 assists (-128)
Doncic has missed the last 3 games with an ankle injury and he is a game-time decision here as well with a high chance of suiting up according to reports. Playing on a bummed ankle is never fun and Luka will most likely settle for more pull-up shots and getting his teammates involved instead of attacking the basket. He had 17 assists in the last meeting against the Lakers and has also cleared this line 4 times in the last 6 meetings while averaging 9.7 assists over the last 10 head-to-head. Only 10 teams in the NBA allow more assists per game than the Lakers (27.1) and I don’t see anyone on this LA roster that matches up well with Luka. Players like Tim Hardaway Jr., who just had 8 threes in the win over the Pelicans, could be in line for another big scoring night here, as Luka shares the wealth.
Check out our NBA mega parlay for tonight’s games at +796 odds
