Lakers vs. Rockets prediction, odds, pick – 1/5/2025
01/04/2025 10:18 PM
The Los Angeles Lakers will battle the Houston Rockets on Sunday in South Texas. It will be a thriller at the Toyota Center as we continue our NBA odds series and make a Lakers-Rockets prediction and pick.
The Lakers lead the head-to-head series 148-89. It will be the first time the Lakers and Rockets face off this season. Significantly, they split the series last season, with the home team winning each game. The Rockets won their games against the Lakers by an average of 27 points per game. Overall, the Lakers are 6-4 in the past 10 games. The Rockets are 4-1 in their past five games at home against the Lakers.
Here are the Lakers-Rockets NBA odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Lakers-Rockets Odds
Los Angeles Lakers: +5.5 (-114)
Moneyline: +184
Houston Rockets: -5.5 (-106)
Moneyline: -220
Over: 219.5 (-110)
Under: 219.5 (-110)
How To Watch Lakers vs. Rockets
Time: 7 PM ET/4 PM PT
TV: SportsNet LA and SCHN
*Watch NBA games LIVE with fuboTV (Get Access | Save $30)*
Why the Lakers Could Cover the Spread/Win
Plenty of things went right in the Lakers’ 119-102 win over the Atlanta Hawks on Friday. First, LeBron James passed Michael Jordan for the most 30-point games in the history of the NBA. Additionally, Austin Reaves had a great game, scoring 20 points, seven rebounds, and six assists. Anthony Davis also had a solid game, tallying 18 points and 19 rebounds. Likewise, Rui Hachimura added 13 points while shooting 6 for 9 from the floor.
The Lakers also got some production off the bench as Dalton Knecht had 13 points while shooting 4 for 7, while Dorian Finney-Smith finished with eight points while going 3 for 5.
The Lakers will be ready for this matchup with the Rockets, and a matchup to watch is Davis vs. center Alperen Sengun. Significantly, both men lead their teams in rebounds, while Davis leads the Lakers in blocked shots. Davis will be a major factor in this game as he contends with the talented big man. Of course, James will also take the reins as the power forward and will have a significant advantage over a Houston team that just lost its power forward.
The Lakers will cover the spread if Davis can win the matchup with Sengun and James can dominate his matchup. Then, the Lakers must win the battle of the boards and clamp down on defense.
Why the Rockets Could Cover the Spread/Win
In addition to the awful loss against the Boston Celtics at home, the Rockets got the worst news possible when they learned Jabari Smith Jr. will miss time with a hand injury. It’s a critical injury for the Rockets, as Smith was one of their top players in the frontcourt, averaging 11.9 points and 6.5 rebounds while shooting 43.5 percent. The injury also puts more pressure on center Sengun and small forward Dillon Brooks to perform even better in the paint. Consequently, it removes a very big piece of a squad that is currently the best in the NBA in rebounding.
As noted before, the Rockets played awful against the Celtics. Jaden Green did his best, scoring 27 points while shooting 10 for 21. Meanwhile, Sengun had 14 points while shooting 6 for 15 from the hardwood. Brooks had 10 points while shooting 4 for 13 from the floor. Also, Cam Whitmore struggled immensely, scoring 11 points while shooting 4 for 17.
The Rockets shot just 36.4 percent from the floor, including 27.8 percent from the triples. Additionally, they turned the ball over 11 times. While the Lakers don’t have the same caliber of defense as the Celtics, they are still good enough to contain the Rockets. Ultimately, that means the Rockets must figure out a way to get clean shots while giving extra opportunities to Sengun and Green. Brooks and Whitmore must also find better chances.
The Rockets will cover the spread if they can convert on their shooting opportunities and get clean shots. Then, they must contain Davis and James while forcing them to defer to other players.
Final Lakers-Rockets Prediction & Pick
The Lakers are 17-17 against the spread, while the Rockets are 20-14 against the odds. Moreover, the Lakers are 7-10 against the spread on the road, while the Rockets are 11-7 against the odds at home. The Lakers are 13-10 against the spread when facing the Western Conference, while the Rockets are 13-9 against the odds when facing their conference.
The Lakers are riding high right now after winning their last two games, while the Rockets are coming off a humiliating loss. Yet, the Rockets are a really good team this season and have bounced back from bad losses before. They also destroyed the Lakers twice at home last season. While Smith is an integral piece of the puzzle, the Rockets still have slightly better strength on the boards and a slightly better defense. I see the Rockets barely covering the spread at home.
Final Lakers-Rockets Prediction & Pick: Houston Rockets: -5.5 (-106)
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