It’s a big Saturday of NBA basketball, and one of the biggest matchups of the slate is the Los Angeles Lakers heading up the coast to take on the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center. The Steph vs. LeBron storyline will be the focus as both veterans and future Hall-of-Famers are leading their teams in search of a playoff appearance in the Western Conference. Coming into this matchup, the Lakers are 24-18 at No. 5 in the West, while the Warriors sit 22-22 just outside the Play-in Tournament at spot No. 11. The Lakers beat the Warriors on Christmas Day, 115-113, and they are one-point favorites on Saturday, with the point total set at 218.5 on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Both teams have long injury reports, and the biggest news is that LeBron James was a late addition due to injury management. Aside from LeBron, most players are probable. Anthony Davis (calf), Andrew Wiggins (back), Brandin Podziemski (abdominal) and Gary Payton II (illness) are all probable, while Rui Hachimura (calf) is listed as questionable. Draymond Green (calf) and Jonathan Kuminga (ankle) also remain out for the Warriors.
Best Prop Bets for Lakers at Warriors on DraftKings Sportsbook
LeBron James to record a double-double (-130)
James was added as questionable due to injury management, but if he plays, this is a strong spot for him. If he’s ruled out before the game, the bet will be refunded, but if he plays, he should be a full go since it’s just for injury management and not a specific injury that happened earlier this week.
James had 31 points, 10 assists and four rebounds against the Warriors on Christmas when he carried the offensive workload after Anthony Davis left early with an injury. LeBron continues to put up big numbers in a variety of ways in almost every game. Over the last week, he had a double-double with 11 assists against the Clippers, a triple-double with 10 rebounds and 13 assists against the Wizards, and a double-double with 14 rebounds on Thursday against the Celtics.
On the season, The King has 20 double-doubles in 39 games (51.2%), and he has posted a double-double in each of his last three games. His non-double-double games are usually near-misses, and he has been within two rebounds or two assists of a double-double in 10 straight games.
There are many different ways to back LeBron to have a big game, but I think this one is a good pick at this price and fairly straightforward while still offering multiple paths to success.
Andrew Wiggins 20+ points (+110)
Wiggins has scored 20+ points in each of the Warriors’ last four home games against the Lakers. He had 21 points in their earlier meeting this season, and he has scored at least 20 points in four of his last six games overall. The two games during that span that he failed to score 20 points were blowouts (one in each direction), but this game is expected to be a close one.
In his 10 games this season without Kuminga, Wiggins is averaging 18.6 points per game and his usage rises to 24.9% compared to his full-season usage of 23.2%. Getting extra shots and carrying more responsibility in a matchup where he has had such recent success makes this a nice place to attack Wiggins’ prop at plus money.
Anthony Davis over 2.5 blocks (+140)
Another plus-money option that I like a lot on Saturday in this matchup is Davis to have at least three blocked shots. With LeBron uncertain, it’s tricky to know what to expect from Davis’ offensive workload, but he has been very consistently excellent on the defensive end of the floor.
Davis has at least three blocks in three straight games against the Clippers, Wizards and Celtics. He has multiple blocks in eight straight games, including five games with at least three blocks.
He didn’t have a block in his last game against Golden State since he played just seven minutes, but he had multiple blocks against the Warriors in each of his last two full games against them and in three of his last five.
Davis is averaging 2.2 blocks per game on the season, and getting this at +140 given his recent trends and workload is a good value to consider.
