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The Utah Jazz (36-21) will pay a visit to the Los Angeles Lakers (26-31) at Crypto.com Arena on Wednesday night. Game time is set for 8:00 p.m. ET.
After a terrible January that saw them go 4-12 while battling injuries and COVID-19 protocols, the Utah Jazz are essentially back to full strength and on a roll. They’ve now won six in a row, making every game in February a victory so far, most recently taking down the Houston Rockets with a 34-point blowout on Monday.
The Lakers have now lost three in a row, dropping results to the Bucks, Trail Blazers, and most recently the Warriors on Saturday. LeBron James went for 26 points, 15 rebounds, and eight assists in the loss that came down to the wire as Klay Thompson led the Dubs to a 117-115 win with 33 points of his own.
DraftKings Sportsbook has the Jazz favored by 4.5 points on the road, with their moneyline odds at -190. The Lakers are at +160 while the point total is set at 226.
Jazz vs. Lakers, 10:00 p.m. ET
Pick ATS: Jazz -4.5 (-110)
The Jazz are playing some solid basketball right now, and with both Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert back in the mix, they’re basically at full strength even after dealing Joe Ingles to Portland. Through their six-game winning streak, they’re locked at the second-best offensive rating and the third-best defensive rating in the league, going 5-1 ATS during that stretch as well.
LeBron James is listed as questionable ahead of tonight’s game due to his ongoing knee injury, so there’s a chance he won’t even see the floor against the Jazz. It’s the Lakers’ last game before the All-Star break, so it’s possible that LA may opt to rest James tonight and get him an entire week of rest before the ASG on Sunday. Carmelo Anthony (hamstring) and Avery Bradley (knee) have already been ruled out for tonight’s game, while Anthony Davis is listed as probable with some wrist soreness. The Lakers could seriously benefit from AD on the court to match up directly with Gobert.
Given how well the Jazz are playing in February, I’m leaning toward that train continuing full steam ahead as they get the win and cover the spread in Los Angeles tonight.
Over/Under: Under 226 (-110)
The Jazz have finished under the total in five of their last six straight games, with the only time hitting over was on Monday against the Rockets. Even with the 34-point win, they only went over by 3.5 points. The Lakers have hit over four times in their last six games, but with LeBron potentially missing tonight’s game, combined with Rudy Gobert’s defensive presence as he makes his way back to full fitness, I think the under is the safe bet here.
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