LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers are a perfect 5-0 straight up and against the spread in their last five games heading into a matchup against the Bulls in Chicago on Tuesday night. The Bulls, meanwhile, have yet to get on track with just one win in their last five outings heading into Tuesday’s tough test.
- Los Angeles Lakers vs Chicago Bulls (Matchup Report)
- Date/Time: November 5, 8 p.m. ET
- TV Coverage: NBATV
- Sportsbook Odds: Los Angeles -5 | O/U 218 (Line History)
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
Books opened the Lakers as 5-point road favorites against the 2-5 Bulls, with the total at 218, and the line moved to Lakers -7 on Tuesday morning. In their most recent matchup, a vastly different Lakers squad bested the Bulls 123-107 last March. Kyle Kuzma is probable to play for the Lakers tonight while shooting guard Avery Bradley is listed as questionable. Bulls forward Otto Porter Jr. is probable with an ankle injury.
Los Angeles News & Notes
The Lakers are coming off an impressive 103-96 victory against a perennially competitive San Antonio Spurs club. The dynamic duo of LeBron James and Anthony Davis is beginning to pay dividends after the team gave up a huge haul for the latter in the offseason.
Davis finished with a team-high 25 points to go along with 11 rebounds and two assists. LeBron played the sidekick role once again but still managed to notch a triple-double with 21 points, 11 rebounds and a team-high 13 assists. Dwight Howard continued his impressive resurgence with 14 points and a team-leading 13 rebounds off the bench.
After losing to the Clippers to start the year, the Lakers have rattled off five straight wins and boast a 2-1 away record. They’ve been favorites in every game so far, giving them a 5-1 record as the favorite and, more impressively, a 5-1 record against the spread.
Chicago News & Notes
The Bulls are coming off a disappointing 108-105 loss to the Victor Oladipo-less Pacers. Zach LaVine led the Bulls with 21 points, while Wendell Carter Jr. continued his impressive sophomore campaign with a double-double, scoring 20 points and pulling down 10 boards.
Offseason acquisition Tomas Satoransky, who came over from Washington as a free agent, paced Chicago with nine assists in just 27 minutes of action. He’s leading the Bulls with 5.3 assists per game.
Chicago sits last in the Central Division at 2-5. Despite a wealth of young talent that also includes promising rookie Coby White and sharpshooting big man Lauri Markkanen, the Bulls have already suffered a number of brutal defeats on the season, including a 20-point blown lead to the 1-6 New York Knicks. It’s unlikely they get on track at home against the Western Conference-leading Lakers.
Betting Pick: Los Angeles -7
The Lakers are looking like one of the top teams in the West, and are tied with the Clippers at +300 odds to win the NBA championship. After losing their home opener to Kawhi Leonard and the Clips, the Lakers have begun to jell under new head coach Frank Vogel, with James, Davis and a rejuvenated Howard leading the defensive resurgence – the Lakers are currently first in the NBA in defensive rating. They’ve also managed to beat the spread in four of their last five contests against the Bulls dating back to 2017, with their lone blemish a PUSH.
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of the Lakers’ last 7 games.
- The Bulls are 2-8 ATS in their last 10 games.
- The Lakers are 4-0-1 ATS in their last 5 games vs Chicago.
