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The NBA season continues with games on Friday. The Portland Trail Blazers will hit the road and take on the Los Angeles Lakers. It's time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Trail Blazers-Lakers prediction and pick.
Both of these teams have not had great starts to the season. The Portland Trail Blazers are 13-21 and have lost their last 3 games. While the Los Angeles Lakers are 17-19 and have lost 6 of their last 7 games. This should be an interesting match up between two struggling teams.
Here are the odds for the Trail Blazers-Lakers Friday night NBA matchup, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Trail Blazers-Lakers Odds
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Portland Trail Blazers: +5.5 (-114)
Los Angeles Lakers: -5.5 (-106)
Over: 227 (-1112)
Under: 227 (-108)
Why The Trail Blazers Could Cover The Spread
The Portland Trail Blazers have been having a very poor season thus far. Through their first 34 games they have only managed to win 13. Portland has lost their last three games, with their most recent defeat coming at the hands of the Utah Jazz by 15. While COVID has been a huge factor in the Blazers recent struggles, prior to the virus' spread this team was not doing well. Portland showed some flashes in their loss against Utah. In order to win on Friday they will need to overcome the COVID handicap and improve on their previous performances.
Across most statistics the Blazers-Jazz game was pretty close. Rebounds, assists, turnovers, steals, and blocks were nearly identical for both teams, with the largest discrepancy being 1. However, what allowed Utah to pull ahead was Portland's lack of shooting efficiency. The Jazz took 87 shots while the Blazers took 88, however Utah made 46 while Portland only made 37. This goes deeper than just shooting percentage, the Jazz were taking much higher quality shots as shown in the difference in points in the paint. Utah scored 70 points in the paint while Portland only scored 30. If the Blazers want to win on Friday then they need to take better shots.
COVID has been spreading across the league and the Portland Trail Blazers are one of the most affected teams. The Blazers have 5 players in the league's health and safety protocols. On top of that they have another 5 players out with injuries, including CJ McCollum. Portland has been struck very hard and will need to overcome this crippling handicap in order to win on Friday. While the Lakers have also been struggling, this will not be an easy game for the Blazers.
Why The Lakers Could Cover The Spread
The Los Angeles Lakers have had one of the most disappointing seasons so far. Through their first 36 games they have a losing record with only 17 wins and 19 losses. The Lakers have been trending downwards, having lost 6 of their last 7 games. LA's most recent defeat came against the Memphis Grizzlies by 5. In a game where the Lakers had the edge they still weren't able to pull out the win. This team has been struggling and Friday will be yet another test of this teams ability to persevere. The Lakers could rise to the occasion, but they could also easily continue to disappoint.
In their loss to Memphis, the Lakers were ahead in nearly every category, yet by the final whistle they lost the game. LA had the edge in both scoring and assists. The Lakers made more shots than the Grizzlies yet still came up short. The Lakers lost this game because of free throws. LA went to the line 8 times in that game while Memphis shot from the stripe 29 times. This discrepancy is nearly impossible to overcome. The Lakers need to stop giving their opponents free shots. If the free throws were even then the Lakers would have handedly won this game.
The Lakers have felt the impact of both COVID and injuries. LA have one player currently in the league's health and safety protocols, Kent Bazemore. However, the Lakers are battling numerous injuries, with AD and Kendrick Nunn both out. On top of that, Avery Bradley and Trevor Ariza are both questionable for Friday's contest. This Lakers team has been struggling to stay together and get wins, Friday could prove to be a turning point. The Blazers are definitely the lesser of these two teams, but the Lakers have shown that they will often play down to their opponents level. This should be an interesting one.
Final Trail Blazers-Lakers Prediction & Pick
Even though the Lakers have been struggling, this Blazers team has been crippled. If there is a winnable game for the Lakers it is definitely this one. Portland has lost their last three games by 14 or more points and have shown no signs of that changing. The Lakers have struggled, but this could be the perfect confidence boosting match that they need to get back on track. Pick the Lakers to win and cover.
FINAL TRAIL BLAZERS-LAKERS PICK: Los Angeles Lakers -5.5 (-106)
FINAL TRAIL BLAZERS-LAKERS SCORE PREDICTION: Lakers 112 – Trail Blazers 101
