Best NBA Betting Picks Today: Lakers vs. Mavericks Player Props & Predictions

COVID is running rampant throughout the NBA, and it is certainly taking its toll on this game in Dallas. The Lakers added a couple of more players to the protocol list but got good news in Anthony Davis being available. With all the issues surrounding the Lakers, they have their top three stars in Davis, LeBron James and a distant Russell Westbrook. The Mavericks are trying to tread water without their superstar Luka Doncic — who will miss tonight’s game in Dallas. With all of the injuries and absences, let’s head to OddsShopper and maximize the value in the Lakers vs. Mavericks game utilizing the FREE Awesemo OddsShopper NBA betting tool.

Check out Adam Strangis’ best DraftKings same game NBA parlay picks for the Lakers vs. Mavericks game, where he gives his favorite NBA player props and best bets for a solid ROI.

Best NBA Betting Picks & Player Props for Lakers vs. Mavericks Tonight

Los Angeles Lakers vs. Dallas Mavericks

Date: Wednesday Dec. 15, 2021
Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
Venue: American Airlines Arena – Dallas, Texas
Coverage: ESPN

Lakers vs. Mavericks NBA Betting Picks + Odds Shopping

The easiest place to find the best bets in the NBA is on OddsShopper, the one-stop shop for value and where to place your wager. The best part is the tool is free and easy to use. Simply filter, sort the page and find the best return available across all books.

Lakers -1.5 (-110, BetMGM)

With so many injuries and absences it is hard to ignore the Los Angeles Lakers are just in a better position to win this game. The game is dictated by its stars, and the Lakers have all three and the Dallas Mavericks are down their top player. No shade to Kristaps Porzingis, as he has played admirably well without Doncic on the floor, but the Lakers are rolling after beating two of the league’s worst teams. Talen Horton-Tucker and Malik Monk are expected to be out, as they entered the league’s COVID protocol, so there is even more room for the Lakers trio to take over in this one. There is value with Jalen Brunson taking over for Doncic, but the Lakers winning this game is a separate play and issue altogether. Davis upgraded to probable moved this line through zero, but there is still plenty of time to get the Lakers under one bucket at -1.5.

Jalen Brunson Over 16.5 Points (-127 SugarHouse)

This is a great starting spot in building a ticket with a nice combination of circumstance and prediction backing this bet. Brunson will continue to see increased minutes with Doncic out, and OddsShopper has Brunson predicted for 20 points. This bet has an expected win rate of 73% chance of hitting and an expected ROI of 30%. OddsShopper provides not only the best side to play and where to play it, but Alex Baker’s projection for each stat. This free tool shows the built-in advantage of where the books are short on what Brunson should do with the added minutes and production. Slam this over, and at -127 it is certainly playable on its own.

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LeBron James Under 7.5 Assists (+110 PointsBet)

OddsShopper has a fantastic sorting tool that allows one to look at player props through expected win rate or expected ROI. This bet makes sense when adding in how many non-superstars are out for the Lakers, mostly impacted by the absence of Talen Horton-Tucker. The narrative would be without a couple of scorers, and with Westbrook struggling, James would take on a larger scoring role against Dallas. The Mavericks are not the best matchup to slow down Anthony Davis, so expect a couple more doubles coming Davis’ way, and allowing some spacing for James. There is a 67% expected win rate chance of this bet hitting at a plus money return which gives an expected ROI of 41%, the best on the board for this game. James is either going to come up short or smash this number, but the game flow would indicate him coming up short. In the five games he is played this month, James has had six or fewer assists in three games.

Reggie Bullock Under 8.5 Points (-104 FanDuel)

Thanks to OddsShopper, bettors can identify a prop that has a great chance of hitting with a favorable number in a smaller market play like Reggie Bullock. While he is only projected for 8.5 points and has seen minutes increase, the return of Tim Hardaway Jr. to the lineup has pushed Bullock back to a defender first. That 15-point game he had earlier this month is the outlier, and the Mavericks will get blown out at home tonight. Bullock’s window for minutes and points will rapidly close the more the Mavericks are down to the Lakers. Bullock has only gone over 8 points in two of his last eight games, and this bet has an expected win rate percentage of 61% and an expected ROI of 20%.

Porzingis, Brunson and Westbrook 20+ Points Each (+700 DraftKings)

Here is the good news: OddsShopper already has both Porzingis and Brunson projected to hit at least 20 points tonight. Both players are seeing an increase in demand for scoring without Doncic on the floor, and Awesemo’s projections have that built in for this game against the Lakers. Even if the Mavericks can only muster up 80 points, the likelihood of Brunson and Porzingis doing the majority of scoring is better than anyone else on that team, including Hardaway. The big question is Westbrook and how he can get over the 18 projected points. Horton-Tucker and Monk are unavailable, and at some point Dallas will shift their focus on stopping Davis then James then Westbrook. With all of these factors coming together, this may be Westbrook’s best shot this month to snap out of his funk.

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