Portland Trail Blazers vs Los Angeles Lakers Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 17/11/2023, 10:20  by Joseph King | Modified on 17/11/2023 at 11:05 in NBA Predictions

The LA Lakers and the Portland Trail Blazers face off for another round of the NBA’s new In-Season Tournament with this West: Group A matchup. The Lakers are leading their group with a perfect 2-0 record thanks to a 134-107 win over the Grizzlies and a 122-119 victory over the Suns. They’ll look to make it a perfect three wins from three as they take on the floundering Trail Blazers. Los Angeles are in an excellent position to advance to the knockout stages with only two games remaining in the group stage. In the regular season, Los Angeles sits seventh in the Western Conference with a 6-6 record. Their most recent outing resulted in a 125-110 away defeat to the Kings, snapping a previous three game winning streak. Anthony Davis was held to only nine points and nine rebounds, tying his lowest points total for the season.

The wheels have come off for the Trail Blazers after an encouraging start to the season saw them sitting on a 3-3 record. A 109-95 loss to the Cavaliers in their last appearance means that Portland have now lost their last five in a row, dropping their regular season record down to 3-8. As for their performance in the tournament, the Blazers have a 1-1 record thanks to a 115-113 overtime victory over the Grizzlies in the beginning of the month. They sit third in the Group A standings but will likely be facing a must win spot here if they are to advance to the next stage. A defeat would drop them to 1-2 and would add to their already steep -14 points differential. With the Jazz and Lakers both at 2-0 and the Suns still having three games to play, Portland will have to grab a victory here if they want to progress any further in the inaugural In-Season Tournament.