Yahoo Sports NBA betting: Lakers vs. Warriors action nearly even despite big Lakers bet
The marquee game of the NBA’s play-in tournament is on deck Wednesday night when the Los Angeles Lakers host the Golden State Warriors.
Star power will be present all over the court with LeBron James and Anthony Davis back in the lineup for the Lakers while Steph Curry, fresh off his second career scoring title, leads the upset-minded Warriors.
The point spread at BetMGM has shifted quite a bit ahead of this one. The Lakers opened as seven-point favorites. That number dipped down to 4.5 at one point but has since settled at 5.5 as of Wednesday afternoon.
The betting action at BetMGM has been fairly even, though there was one big bet — $66,000 to win $60,000 — on the Lakers at -4.5. Even with that big bet, the Lakers have received only 54% of the money to cover the spread at BetMGM. The Lakers also have a slight advantage with 55% of the bets.
The Lakers have played just 27 games with both James and Davis available. They are 13-14 against the spread in those games. On the Golden State side, the Warriors have won 15 of their last 20 games and are 14-6 ATS over that span. Most of that damage has been done at home. During that 20-game stretch, the Warriors are 9-2 ATS at home and 5-4 ATS on the road.
The total has moved quite a bit, too. It opened at 221.5 but has since dropped down to 217.5. Despite the total decreasing, most of the action is on the over. According to BetMGM, 75% of the bets and 65% of the money are on the over.
Bettors backing Grizzlies over Spurs
In the other Western Conference play-in game, the Memphis Grizzlies are four-point favorites over the San Antonio Spurs.
The public is heavily backing the Grizzlies with 74% of the bets and 84% of the money at BetMGM siding with Memphis against the spread. The spread opened at three and has since jumped to four.
The Spurs, though, have been the best team against the spread on the road in the NBA this season. Entering Wednesday night’s game, the Spurs are 23-12-1 ATS on the road with a 14-8-1 ATS mark as a road underdog.
Memphis has also been strong against the spread this year, posting a 42-30 overall record. That’s the third-best ATS record in the NBA, trailing only the New York Knicks (45-26-1) and the Phoenix Suns (42-28-2).
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