The Wizards are visiting Los Angeles with hopes of continuing the perfect start of the season following a narrow road win over the Denver Nuggets on Monday. On the other hand, the Lakers are looking for the first home victory after two defeats but are underdogs on this one.
Wizards at Lakers
Spread: Washington Wizards -6 (-110)
Total: Over/Under 230 (-110)
The Wizards are looking for the fourth straight win over the Lakers
The Washington Wizards are one of four undefeated teams so far in the season, and they are the only one with the perfect record in the Eastern Conference. Although many thought they will lose at Denver, the Wizards came away victorious – 109:104. The Nuggets had the lead for most of the first half and were up by eight at one point, but Washington took over after the interval and held the lead for the remainder of the tilt.
The Wizards weren’t convincing from the field with 44% field goal and only 30% from beyond the arc (9-30), but they won mainly thanks to the excellent free-throw percentage, 92.9% (26-28). Also, they had 15 turnovers in opposite to Denver’s 23, while Washington recorded 13 steals and the Nuggets just five. The cool hands from John Wall (13-15 from the free-throw line) and Bradley Beal in the final minutes of the clash secured the victory for the Wizards as the pair combined for 39 points. Wall added 12 assists and a couple of thefts to his name, while Otto Porter also had a significant role with a double-double of 17 points and ten rebounds, along with game-high four steals.
Washington had six players in double digits including Kelly Oubre, Marcin Gortat, and Tim Frazier, while other four players all managed to get on the scoreboard. Wall and Beal are the team leaders after four matches with 24.3 and 23.3 ppg, respectively, while Otto Porter is behind the duo with 18.3 points per contest on average. When it comes to rebounding, Gortat has 10.3 boards per match so far; Porter is very good with 9.0 rpg, while Oubre posts 6.3 rebounds per game. John Wall is averaging a double-double at the moment (ten dishes per contest), and he will have a good matchup against the rookie Lonzo Ball, so I expect Washington’s point guard to continue with excellent performances. Beal will have a much harder job against Kentavious Caldwell-Pope who is a solid defender, while the duel between Gortat and Brook Lopez should be quite interesting. The Polish international fouled out in Denver, and he must be careful not to repeat that in Los Angeles or Lopez could create a lot of problems for the Wizards defense with Marcin on the bench.
Washington is still without the power forward Markieff Morris as he is sidelined with a hernia, so Kelly Oubre will get another start at the PF position. Jason Smith is suffering from a sprained right shoulder and is listed as day-to-day, but we could see them on limited minutes on Wednesday. The Wizards are currently averaging 114.66 points per game, while they are allowing 110.00 in return, so I am anticipating to see a bunch of points on this one as Washington conceded 100+ in each of previous three matches.
Place: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California
Date/Time: Wednesday, October 25th, 2017. 10:30 PM ET
TV Coverage:
The Lakers are in the search for the first win at Staples Center
The Los Angeles Lakers entered this campaign with a home loss to the city rivals the Clippers, but then bounced back in a shootout against the Suns in the desert when it was 132:130. However, the Lakers suffered another home defeat to the New Orleans Pelicans and are without a victory at Staples Center, so they will be motivated to get the W and end the Wizards’ perfect start of the season.
Los Angeles struggled in the first quarter against the Pelicans, losing the period by 12 points, and they failed to get back into contest even though they won both quarters in the second half. The Lakers lost 112:119, but there were a few positives after the clash as Kentavious Caldwell-Pope made his Lakers debut with 20 points, and Lonzo Ball getting near to the triple-double, recording eight points, 13 assists, and eight rebounds. Jordan Clarkson led the team with 24 points, along with five dishes off the bench, while Kyle Kuzma impressed with 20 points and six boards. On the negative side, Brook Lopez scored just seven points with six boards in 17 minutes, struggling from the field (2-8) against Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins who dominated in the paint.
Brandon Ingram also had a quiet night after scoring seven points in 24 minutes, but both of them should display way better performances on this one. For the time being, Jordan Clarkson is leading the Lakers with 19.7 points per game on average, while Brook Lopez with 15.3, Ingram with 14.7, and Kyle Kuzma with 14.3 are also key contributors in the offense. The No. 2 pick overall in this year’s draft, Lonzo Ball, responded well after dreadful debut against the Clippers and now has 13.3 ppg, 9.3 rpg, and 8.7 apg, and it is clear that he will become one of the best point guards in the NBA. At the moment, he leads Los Angeles in assists and rebounds per contest, and it’s only a matter of time when he’ll get at the top of the scoring chart as well.
The Lakers are scoring 112.00 points per match on average, while they are allowing 119.00 in return, and considering that Washington are scoring around 115 points per contest, I expect Los Angeles to concede close to 120 on Wednesday.
Washington Wizards at Los Angeles Lakers Game Trends & Prediction
The Wizards are in a run of five consecutive victories over the Lakers at Staples Center, and judging by their current form, I expect them to secure another win and maintain the 100% record early in the season. They are 0-3 against the spread so far, so I would avoid playing on the spread this time around as Washington won all three matches by a five-point margin or less. When it comes to over/under, the Wizards are 2-1, but the previous game at Denver went under.
The Lakers’ latest victory over Washington was in December 2015, but they are without a home win against the same rival since 2010. Los Angeles is 1-2 against the spread but are 2-1 on over/under, so we can witness a shootout on Wednesday. I think both teams will score over 100 points without a problem, but I am giving the advantage to the visitors.
My Pick: Wizards -6 (-110)
Total: Under 230 (-110)
