The Dallas Mavericks welcome the Los Angeles Lakers at American Airlines Center this Thursday, looking to avenge their early-season loss to the Purple and Gold. Check out our preview of this game below.
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Betting Preview for the Los Angeles Lakers vs Dallas Mavericks NBA Regular Season Game on April 22, 2021
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX
When: Thursday, April 22, 2021, 9:30 PM ET
Line: Los Angeles Lakers (Odds) vs. Dallas Mavericks (Odds) – view all 2020-21 NBA lines
TV Broadcast: TNT
Betting on the Los Angeles Lakers (odds)
Regular Season Record: 35-23
The Lakers are still waiting for LeBron James and Anthony Davis to return. Those two will not be taking the court this Thursday against Dallas, but the Lakers still have some weapons to rely on. Kyle Kuzma, Dennis Schroder, and Talen Horton-Tucker have been doing decent jobs in keeping the Lakers from disintegrating sans their superstars. The Lakers are a mediocre team without James and Davis, but Dallas hasn’t been playing well of late either. Kuzma and company can get plenty of scoring chances against the Mavs, who just allowed 117 and 121 points to the New York Knicks and Sacramento Kings in their last two games, respectively. The presence of Andre Drummond in the middle could have the Lakers getting lots of extra possessions, with his excellent rebounding, especially on the offensive glass.
The Lakers are 6-4 against the spread in their last 10 games overall.
Betting on the Dallas Mavericks (odds)
Regular Season Record: 30-26
The Mavericks have some issues to fix. Luka Doncic and company have lost four of their last five games, including the aforementioned back-to-back losses at the hands of the Knicks and the Kings. Part of the Mavs’ problem is their outside shooting that has gone sour of late. They have only made 31.3 percent of their 3-point shots over the last five games with Doncic making just 27.7 percent and Kristaps Porzingis 28.6 percent. The Mavs are also getting minimal offense from Tim Hardaway of late. He has averaged just 9.2 points in the last five games while shooting just 34.8 percent from the field. At some point, the Mavericks will get out of their slump and a frustrated Doncic could get his team into getting it together. Doncic and Porzingis are always trouble for any opponent, and with the Lakers missing Davis, the Latvian unicorn can take advantage of his range and matchup against a slower, less nimble Drummond.
The Mavs, who play the Detroit Pistons this Wednesday, are 5-5 against the spread in their last 10 games against the Lakers at home.
Writer’s Prediction
The Mavericks win, 114-112.
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