Which playoff hopeful will earn a crucial win in tonight's clash of Pacific Division opponents? Read on for our Suns vs. Lakers NBA picks based on the best NBA odds.
As we near the end of the NBA season, nearly every game played by a contending team has major implications. Wednesday's clash between the Los Angeles Lakers and the visiting Phoenix Suns is no exception.
The Suns are the No. 4 seed, but just 2.5 games out of ending up in the play-in tournament. The team will be missing Deandre Ayton, but Phoenix is 8-2 straight up without him this season. The Lakers are the No. 11 seed, but sit just half a game out making the play-in and 1.5 games out of earning the No. 6 seed with LeBron James' return imminent. Each team is 1-4 straight up across its last five, so a win tonight is crucial for the final playoff push.
Here is our best Suns vs. Lakers NBA pick (odds via FanDuel Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).
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Suns vs. Lakers pick
Everyone loves a good Over bet, but there's no way we're taking the Over on this prop. Anthony Davis has been phenomenal this season, and this PRA line of 43.5 seems modest at first glance, but let's dive a little bit deeper here.
On the season, AD has averaged 43.4 combined points, rebounds, and assists on the road compared to just 39 at home. He has only cleared this number in just eight of 26 home games. Davis has hit this number just once in his last five appearances, and that came on the road against his former team in the New Orleans Pelicans.
How about Davis' production against the Suns? He went off for 37 points, 21 rebounds, and two assists against Phoenix earlier this season. That game was on the road, and it represents just one of two games in which he went for 44 PRAs in seven matchups with Phoenix since joining the Lakers in 2019-20.
The Suns will be without Deandre Ayton tonight, but that doesn't make this a slam-dunk matchup for AD. In fact, the Suns' defensive rating without Ayton (110.7) is nearly four points better than it is with him (114.4). Phoenix allows just two more rebounds and the same number of assists per game with Ayton off the floor this season, so we won't allow his absence to cloud our judgment on this wager.
Suns vs. Lakers best odds
| DraftKings | FanDuel | BetMGM | Caesars | PointsBet |
| Under 43.5 PRA | Under 43.5 PRA | Under 43.5 PRA | Under 43.5 PRA | Under 43.5 PRA |
| -120 | -111 | Unavailable | -117 | -115 |
BetMGM is the only book that doesn't offer this prop, but that's of no concern. PointsBet, Caesars, and DraftKings offer decent odds, but we can certainly do better. That's why we'll make this wager on FanDuel, where we can get odds nearly even with the -110 standard odds typically applied to spread and total bets.
Suns vs. Lakers odds
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Suns vs. Lakers odds analysis
The Suns opened as small road favorites at -1.5, and that line hasn't yet moved. Bettors give a slight edge to the road team to cover, with 55% of wagers placed on Phoenix, which has failed to cover in five straight. The Suns are 9-8 ATS as the road favorite and 9-3 against division opponents. The Lakers have covered in just one of their last five and faile d to cover in both matchups with Phoenix this season.
The point total remains steady at a modest 227.5, and bettors overwhelmingly favor the Over, with 72% of wagers placed on that outcome. The Lakers have kept the score low at home this season, hitting the Under in 22 of 36 games at Crypto.com Arena. Los Angeles has hit the Under in seven of its last nine overall. The Suns are even with an 8-8-1 mark as road favorites this season, but Phoenix has hit the Over in seven of 12 divisional matchups.
Suns vs. Lakers game info
- Date: Wednesday, March 22, 10 p.m. ET
- TV: ESPN
- Location: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA
Suns-Lakers pick made 03/22/2023 at 9:15 a.m. ET.
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