The Los Angeles Lakers have fallen on some hard times of late, but aren’t yet out of the playoff race in a Western Conference that doesn’t have a clear eighth-best team. Los Angeles needs to play much better going forward, and that includes a home victory over the struggling Dallas Mavericks.
Both of these teams have traditionally been playoff participants but both are in a rebuilding phase this season. The Mavericks hope the return of Dirk Nowitzki can spark them and help improve on a putrid start.
At 8 p.m. ET, tune into ESPN for live television coverage of this NCAA basketball game on Thursday, December 29, 2016, at Quicken Loans Arena.
We'll have NBA odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the NBA Thursday schedule.
Odds Analysis
The Lakers are 12-22 straight up and 15-18-1 against the spread on the year. Los Angeles has gone 6-7-1 against the spread at home this season. The Lakers may be slight favorites, and if so they will aim to improve on a record of 2-4-1 as the favorite. Los Angeles has been an underdog for most of the season so it needs to take advantage if the pick is for it to win.
The Mavericks are 9-21 straight up and 14-16 against the spread on the year. Dallas has only been favored one time on the year, an extreme departure from the core which won a title several years ago and has usually been a postseason entrant. Dallas is 13-16 against the spread on the road this season.
Injury Report
The Mavericks have welcomed back with open arms star power forward Dirk Nowitzki. While their leader is getting up in age, he is still one of the better players on the team.
Nowitzki has only played in six games this year due to injury but has returned for the last two. His minutes were managed, but in his return Nowitzki scored 17 points in 15 minutes, showing he can still take over ballgames.
He is averaging 13 points and six rebounds per game this season but could see an uptick in that as he gets healthier. Nowitzki has averaged 22 points and 7.9 rebounds per game during his career and has always been one of the best shooting big men in the NBA.
If he plays well, it will certainly give the Mavericks a chance at winning this game and sparking a turnaround.
Key Stat
12. That’s the number of losses for the Lakers in their past 14 games, as they have sunk deeply in the standings. Los Angeles has a young core and this was supposed to be a rebuilding year, but the fast start got people excited.
The Lakers seem unlikely to make the playoffs unless the young group can jell quickly. Lou Williams is leading the Lakers in scoring at 18.7 points per game, while D’Angelo Russell is adding 15.0 points and 4.5 assists.
Nick Young, Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randle are also averaging in double figures and hope to lead the team to a win in this one.
Free NBA ATS Pick
The Lakers have shown some promise this year and need to take care of business in this home game. However, the Mavericks have gotten a huge boost with the return of Nowitzki.
He is nearing the end of his career, but could still have a huge impact on this game. Dallas has struggled badly this year but has enough talent to turn it on if Nowitzki and J.J. Barea can return to health and start playing some good ball.
The Lakers may be slight favorites but the Mavericks will be able to come in and take care of business despite playing on the road. The return of Nowitzki is a game-changer, which the Lakers will find out in this one.
NBA Odds: Mavericks 113, Lakers 108
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
