Keagan Smith dives into his pick and prediction for the Los Angeles Lakers vs. Orlando Magic game on Saturday\u2019s NBA slate.<\/p>\n
Hoops fans are thriving right now with plentiful options across the sport\u2019s landscape to tune into across the day. The Los Angeles Lakers have begun to really hit their stride with eight consecutive wins heading into the weekend, rising all the way to third in the Western Conference. They\u2019ll face off today against the Orlando Magic, who were mostly hot coming out of the All-Star break but have since cooled down considerably with three straight losses.<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s a Lakers vs. Magic prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Saturday\u2019s contest.<\/p>\n
Lakers vs. Magic prediction, preview<\/p>\n
Los Angeles Lakers<\/p>\n
The Lakers are finally playing their best ball of the season, going a cool 11-1 over their last 12 games following a brief sputter coming out of the All-Star break. Over this span, they rank second in NETRTG at +11.0 and have the league\u2019s best offense with a 122.4 OFFRTG.<\/p>\n
Overall this season, Los Angeles sits 13th in NETRTG at +1.5, so one can see just how much of a heater the team has been on as of late. The group also sits 20th in pace. The offense averages 116.6 PPG on the year which is good for 11th in the NBA, and the Lakers are actually the best team from the field with a 50.0% FG%. A 35.9% 3P% is also solid, and they\u2019re first in free throw rate as well with the ninth-most points in the paint. A 1.779 AST\/TO ratio falls 19th, but there\u2019s no shortage of high-level playmakers on this roster either. There are a couple of weaknesses though. The Lakers are just 27th in rebounding with 40.9 boards per game and while the defense allows 115.1 PPG (15th), they\u2019re 20th in DEFRTG.<\/p>\n
NBA scoring leader Luka Doncic drops in 33.4 points a night with 7.9 boards and 8.4 assists. He\u2019s joined by the King himself, with LeBron James averaging a cool 21.3 points, 5.8 rebounds and 6.9 assists as well. Austin Reaves, who brings 23.5 points and 5.5 assists per game, is questionable to play tonight. The Lakers also get key contributions from Deandre Ayton and Rui Hachimura, with the former pitching in 12.4 points with a team-high 8.2 boards while the latter scores 11.3 PPG.<\/p>\n
Orlando Magic<\/p>\n
The Magic, meanwhile, has a nice thing going and had won seven straight games of their own prior to this three-game losing streak. They\u2019ve mostly weathered the storm while Franz Wagner and Anthony Black both remain sidelined due to injury, but they\u2019re in danger of falling into the Play-In Tournament as three other teams are just half a game back of them for sixth in the Eastern Conference.<\/p>\n
With a +1.0 NETRTG, Orlando is 16th in the category as well as 15th in pace. The Magic average 115.4 PPG (17th) and fall 19th in OFFRTG, and the pathway as to why is fairly clear. They\u2019re shooting just 46.3% from the field and 34.5% from deep, and while third in free throw rate, the offense just doesn\u2019t click as well without two of its four best scorers in the lineup. The Magic are 15th in assists with the 10th-best AST\/TO ratio at 1.937, so that\u2019s something of a positive. They\u2019re also 16th in rebounding with 43.6 boards a game. The defense is tough as usual, holding opponents to 114.4 PPG (11th) at 10th in DEFRTG as well.<\/p>\n
Paolo Banchero continues to anchor this lineup as the primary option with 22.3 points, 8.5 rebounds and 5.0 assists a game. His scoring mark has improved to 25.1 PPG since the All-Star break as well. Desmond Bane has played an integral role especially as of late with 20.6 points, 4.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists, and Jalen Suggs brings 13.8 points with a team-high 5.2 dimes. Notably, starting center Wendell Carter Jr. is questionable with a rib contusion, so the Magic may miss his 11.7 points and 7.5 boards if he doesn\u2019t suit up.<\/p>\n
Lakers vs. Magic pick, best bet<\/p>\n
DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Lakers as -3.5 road favorites tonight with -155 odds on the Moneyline. The Magic are listed at +130 odds on the ML with the game total set at 232.5 combined points.<\/p>\n
These sides met just once so far this season back on February 24. The Magic took that matchup 110-109, but Orlando had Black for that one while Suggs missed it. Banchero did post 36 points in that game as he powered his team to a win.<\/p>\n
The outlook seems somewhat different tonight, though. The Lakers are playing their best basketball and are hot as can be. The absence of Reaves could hurt, but Doncic has been on a heater himself with at least 30 points in every game dating back to March 6 and performances of 60, 40, 51 and 44 points in that span. He\u2019s certainly capable of shouldering more of the scoring load tonight if Reaves doesn\u2019t play. Compare that to the Magic, who are a good team but are losing momentum and are without two of their four highest scorers in Black and Wagner. Factor in a potential absence for Carter Jr. and Orlando\u2019s upside drops further.<\/p>\n
With Doncic playing like the best talent in the world and the Magic losing momentum, I like Los Angeles to cover here. The Lakers are 41-29 ATS this season while their opponent is only 31-38 ATS, not to mention that L.A. has covered in eight straight matchups as well as 11 of its last 12.<\/p>\n