504 Clippers (+3.5) over Lakers
NBA season is back and kicking off with the battle of LA! I’m not as big of a believer in this Lakers roster as their odds to win the championship would indicate and the opinions of majority of the media covering the NBA. This roster would’ve been more respected maybe a few years ago when their players were more closer to their primes and healthier but the only player on their roster that could possibly strike fear is Anthony Davis at this point. The Lakers will be faced with huge pressure to live up to expectations this season. They traded just about everything away of their future to bring Anthony Davis to LA (young players & draft picks) and Davis could be a free agent and walk if things don’t work out. LeBron has been the best player in this era but farther time is undefeated and he’s entering year 17 but it’s more like year 19.5 if you include his postseason games and minutes and no player in NBA history has had a positive impact contributing to a championship team playing that many years. Another huge factor working against LeBron is in the 55 games he played last year averaging 28 points 8 rebounds and 8 assists, LA only had a record of 28-27. His numbers had little to no impact on his team winning like we’ve been accustomed to seeing from him in his prime. On the other side I am a believer in this Clippers team. Last year they were the 8th seed with no superstar and took the dynasty Warriors to a tough 6 game series and now they add Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. George will be out for this matchup but the addition of Kawhi is enough to make them elite. Over the last 3 years the Clippers have been the better team in this matchup going 8-4 straight up and 7-5 ATS. The Clippers are just the better team. Their star players are in their primes, the rest of the roster is more of a better fit and they have the better coach.