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The Cleveland Cavaliers are visiting sunny Southern California to face the empty-handed Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers will once again be without their two All-Stars in LeBron James and Anthony Davis. With that said, it’s time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Cavaliers-Lakers prediction and pick.
The Cavaliers are coming off a great team win against the Chicago Bulls. They sit in the 12th seed in the Eastern Conference with a record of 17-21.
The Lakers, on the other hand, have dropped their fourth consecutive game with both James and Davis out due to injuries, and have fallen to the fourth seed in the Western Conference with a record of 28-17.
Here’s how sportsbooks have set the opening Cavaliers-Lakers odds.
NBA Odds: Cavaliers-Lakers Odds
Cleveland Cavaliers +3.5 (-105)
Los Angeles Lakers -3.5 (-115)
Over 208 Points (-110)
Under 208 Points(-110)
Why The Cavaliers Could Cover The Spread
The Cavaliers may be without their star player, Collin Sexton, against the Lakers on Friday. This is terrible news for the Cavaliers as they lose their main offensive weapon against a shorthanded Lakers team.
Sexton so far this season for the Cavaliers has been averaging 24 points, 4.3 assists, and 2.8 rebounds per game. The Cavaliers will be desperately missing Sexton as they already have the league's worst offensive rating.
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Aside from Sexton, the Cavaliers have just three other players averaging double-digit scoring and they are Darius Garland, Jarrett Allen, and Cedi Osman. This combined with the fact that the Cavaliers are also the tenth worse defensive rated team in the league will rarely result in a win against any opponent in the NBA.
That said, even despite the Lakers being empty-handed with Lebron and Davis both out, the Cavaliers will have a tough night trying to cover the spread and pull out a victory especially without Sexton suiting up.
Why The Lakers Could Cover The Spread
Without LeBron and Davis, the Lakers are just a completely different team and without a doubt for the worse.
Not surprisingly though as the Lakers lose a combined 47.9 points, 10.9 assists, and 16.3 rebounds per game with both Lebron and Davis out. Not to mention, everything else that those two brings to the team like closers, ball movement, confidence, and intensity.
In their four straight losses, the Lakers have seen key players in Dennis Schröder, Kyle Kuzma, and Montrezl Harrel step up. Each of them has been averaging double-digit points per game within this span of time as well as for the season.
The issue for the Lakers has been with the rest of the players who are terribly inconsistent. They either typically don't see any minutes with James and AD playing, or their offensive game relies heavily on those two.
That said, players like Talen Horton-Tucker, Alex Caruso, Markieff Morris, and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope need help to score offensively every single night if they want a chance to win.
Just the other night against the 76ers, THT saw 19 minutes of action, and Wesley Matthews saw 28. Within that time on the floor, the two combined for six points. That said, the Lakers will need an entire team effort on both ends of the floor in order to cover the spread and pull out a win against the Cavaliers.
Final Cavaliers-Lakers Prediction & Pick
The Lakers are looking to end their four-game losing streak as they host the Cavaliers on Friday. Without LeBron and Davis, the Lakers have looked awful, to say the least. Luckily, they are facing a not-so-great team in the Cavaliers who are dead last in offensive rating and holds the tenth worse defensive rating.
The star player for the Cavaliers, Sexton, is also a game-time decision against the Lakers on Friday. Regardless of whether Sexton suits up or not, the Lakers should be able to pull out a tough victory against the Cavaliers to end their four-game losing streak.
FINAL SCORE PREDICTION: LAL 104 – CLE 98 (LAL -3.5)
