The battle for LA will take place at Crypto.com Arena on this Wednesday night as the Los Angeles Lakers square off with the Los Angeles Clippers for bragging rights galore! Join us for our NBA odds series where our Clippers-Lakers prediction and pick will be revealed.

While the Los Angeles Lakers have all of the championships and pizazz that come with being Southern California's favorite NBA team, it has been the other LA team in the Clippers that have reeled off eleven straight wins against their inner-city rivals which dates back to more than three seasons ago. Not to mention, the Clippers recently made a splash move by acquiring ten-time All-Star James Harden in a blockbuster trade. Overall, the Clippers enter this matchup coming off of a 118-102 win over the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night and have won three of their first four games of the 2023-2024 regular season.

Meanwhile, it has been the Lakers who are still adjusting in handling LeBron James' minutes and are figuring out how to gel as a team. All together, the Lakers head into tonight after a thrilling matchup against the Magic themselves which saw LA come out on top by a score of 106-103. With a dead-even 2-2 record this far, can the Lakers finally put it together and embark on their first winning streak of the season by snapping their long and grueling losing streak to the Clippers?

Here are the NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

NBA Odds: Clippers-Lakers Odds

Los Angeles Clippers: +4.5 (-106)

Los Angeles Lakers: -4.5 (-114)

Over: 226 (-108)

Under: 226 (-112)

How to Watch Clippers vs. Lakers

Time: 10:10 ET/7:10 PT

TV: Bally Sports SoCal

Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)

Why The Clippers Could Cover The Spread

At the moment, it appears that James Harden will not be available for his first game as a Clipper, but Los Angeles is still a deep team without him. As it stands, the Clippers championship window is not getting any larger with their main bulk of stars continuing to age well into their 30's which makes the next couple of seasons that much more important to get the job done.

Not only have the Clippers been the Lakers' daddy as of late (sorry Nuggets fans), but the biggest thing that needs to go right for the Clippers this season is remaining healthy while on the hardwood. Obviously, the injury bug has greatly hindered the Clips' over recent years, and even though they have gotten off to a rock-solid start at 3-0 to begin the season, this will be something intriguing to watch as the season progresses.

Most importantly, the best chance that the Clippers have to cover against the Lakers is for them to get off to a hot start. Although the Clippers' level of competition hasn't been as high as other teams to begin the season, this is an offense that is averaging a whopping 120 points per game and not storming out of the gates from the opening tip could end up being costly.

Why The Lakers Could Cover The Spread

Ultimately failing to cover as favorites against the Magic by being -3.5 point favorites, the Lakers actually trailed for most of the fourth quarter on Monday night as it took an epic come-from-behind victory to at the minimum even up their record at 2-2.

All in all, the biggest recipe for success that the Lakers will endure later tonight will be in large part due to dominant and consistent play down low on the block. More specifically, will Anthony Davis come prepared for play or will he be a no-show? Overall, Davis' tenure in a Lakers uniform has been a rollercoaster ride, to say the least. At times, Davis's dominant ways are on full display with one of the best skill sets out of a big man in the league, but often, the former Kentucky standout disappears when the Lakers need him the most.

After comments by LeBron James himself signaling that AD is now the face of the franchise, he needs to start acting like it on and off the floor. Luckily for the Lake Show, Davis has combined for 86 points in his last three games and is averaging 25.8 PPG to begin his season-long campaign. Can he will his team over the top by finally defeating the Clippers while also covering the spread? Only time will tell.

Last but certainly not least, the Lakers need more efficiency from beyond the arc. Last time out against the Magic, it was LA that connected on only 8 of their 27 three-point attempts. As a whole, the Lakers rank 28th in three-point percentage with a 29.2 mark. Simply put, this needs to change in a big way to overcome the Clippers and start winning on a consistent basis.

Final Clippers-Lakers Prediction & Pick

This rivalry is as heated as it gets! The Lakers will have their chances in this one, but until they finally beat the Clippers, then it is unwise to rely on them to cover the spread. Hammer the Clippers to keep this one close and possibly win as surprising +6.5 point underdogs.

Final Clippers-Lakers Prediction & Pick: Clippers +4.5 (-106)