Los Angeles may be without Anthony Davis when it guns for its seventh straight win Friday in Dallas, while Kristaps Porzingis is already officially ruled out for the Mavs. LA has won two of the three meetings between the teams this season, but the Mavericks have won eight of 11 vs LA in Texas.
- Date/Time: January 10, 9:45 p.m. ET
- Arena: AT&T Center
- TV Coverage: ESPN, Fox Sports Southwest, Spectrum SportsNet
- Sportsbook Odds: Mavericks -1.5 / O/U 222.5
- Lakers vs Mavericks Matchup Report
Sportsbook Odds Analysis
The Lakers have not been favored in Dallas since November 2012 — a span of 12 straight games and counting. The UNDER is 6-1 in the last seven meetings overall.
Los Angeles News & Notes
LA extended its winning streak to six games Tuesday with a 30-point home win over the Knicks, but the purple and gold weren’t in a mood to celebrate after seeing Anthony Davis leave the game in the third quarter with an apparent back injury.
The Lakers felt much better the next morning to hear that Davis, who fell hard to the floor after trying to block a shot by Julius Randle, merely had a bruise on his backside. His status for Friday was still unclear as of Thursday night, although it’s worth noting that AD did accompany the team on the flight to Dallas.
Fortunately for the Lakers, they can probably survive a game or two without their scoring and rebounding leader if the rest of the frontcourt continues its strong recent play. Dwight Howard pulled down a season-high 13 rebounds in just 25 minutes of action Tuesday and has recorded five blocks in two straight outings, while Kyle Kuzma has scored 16 points or more in five of his last eight games.
And we haven’t even mentioned the King, who hit six threes Tuesday despite playing through an illness — although his streak of seven straight games with double-digit assists was snapped.
Dallas News & Notes
Five different Mavericks scored at least 13 points in Tuesday’s 107-106 home loss to Denver, but the fourth quarter underlined how valuable the injured Kristaps Porzingis is to their roster.
The Nuggets defense keyed in on Luka Doncic in the final frame, holding the Mavs superstar off the scoreboard, and Dallas managed just 17 points in the quarter. Dallas has now lost three of five games since losing Porzingis to a right knee injury that will keep him out of Friday’s clash with the Lakers as well.
Dallas also continues to struggle at home, where it’s just 11-9 SU and 7-12-1 ATS this season compared to 12-5 SU and ATS on the highway. However, the Mavs have fared well when hosting the Lakers in recent years, going 8-3 SU and 6-4-1 ATS in their last 11 — including a hard-fought 119-110 OT loss to LA earlier this season.
Betting Pick: UNDER 222.5
The UNDER is 6-1 in the last seven meetings, and it’d be a perfect 7-0 if the teams hadn’t gone to OT the last time they met in Dallas.
- The Lakers are 3-8-1 ATS in their last 12 games.
- The Mavericks are 1-6-1 ATS in their last 8 home games.
- The Mavericks are 8-3 SU in their last 11 home games vs LA.
