NBA: Portland Trail Blazers vs Los Angeles Lakers Pick and Predictions 10/23/2022

Game: 3:30 PM ET, Sunday, October 23rd

Venue:  Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California

Where to Watch: NBA League Pass

Blazers: 2-0; a surprising 3rd place in the Western Conference for a tanking team!

Lakers: 0-2; a surprising last place in the Western Conference for a team with NO PICK to tank to!

DraftKings:  Point Spread: Lakers -3; O/U N/A

PointsBet: Point Spread: Lakers -3.5; O/U 223

William Hill: Point Spread: N/A

Blazers: PG Damian Lilliard, SG Anfernee Simons, SF Josh Hart, PF Jerami Grant, C Jusuf Nurkic

Lakers: PG Russell Westbrook, SG Patrick Beverley, SF Lonnie Walker IV, PF LeBron James, C Anthony Davis

A Western Conference matchup that is about to blow everyone’s mind.  The Blazers are good with just one great player!  The Lakers are bad with 3 Great players (at least NBA history Great).  The tale of the tape is about depth and optimism… and especially shooting.  Every single player on the Blazers roster is a better shooter than their more famous counterpart on the Lakers roster.  Plus the Blazers have an odd depth…. The Blazers depth is made up of proven 5th or 6th options for other teams… the Blazers depth is made up of first round draft busts and guys with actual postseason playing experience.  The Lakers depth is an array of undrafted rookie free agents and little known second round picks.  So even though the Lakers have 3 historically Great NBA players… and even though one of those Lakers players is LeBron!!  The Blazers have the advantage as the game goes on… just from shooting percentage and quality subs.  It’s an odd world we live in!

The Portland Trail Blazers traded CJ McCollum last season as PG Damian Lilliard sat out with an ab injury and the team cruised to a last place finish.  The signals were clear.  This team WAS rebuilding.  They were holding on to ONE Great player and would pay him 50 million a season while trying to build around him.  The biggest part of that plan would of course be getting a GREAT draft pick this season… but a week into the 2022-23 season… It seems that the Blazers will be good right now.  They will at least start the season 2-0.  Beating the Kings and then beating the Suns… both while being the underdog.  We may still get a tankathon… but maybe the combined pride of Lilliard and Billups means this team will be marginally good whoever they get to put the uniform on.

The Los Angeles Lakers have the wrong owner… and the wrong GM and they have done All The Wrong Moves.  They have in the fold currently (could change at any moment) PG Russell Westbrook who not only can’t shoot but draws ire from his own fans when he tries to.  The dark pall hanging over the Lakers can be tasted in the air.  It is sulfuric.  It is heart stopping.  The Lakers one decision left is to trade Russell to the Indiana Pacers with TWO MORE first round picks!  For SG Buddy Hield and C Myles Turner! Both of whom the Lakers would have to resign (going way over the cap!)... and both of whom would be useful in amazing ways.  C Myles Turner would allow the soon to be injured Anthony Davis to move back to power forward… and Buddy Hiled would provide SHOOTING… which the Laker shave none of.  It’s funny that the Charlotte Hornets or even THESE Portland Trail Blazers don’t swoop in and take this deal away from the Lakers as it is just what those teams need also.  But such is life.  The Lakers will see LaBron James surpass Kareem Abdul jabbar for the all time scoring leader… this season!... Will they see it as a winning team or a last place chump?

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The Trail Blazers came out of Game 2 13th in scoring with 114 per game, 12th in rebounds with 46 per game, 28th in AST/TO ratio with 1.1, and 25th in blocks per game with 3.5.

The Lakers came out of Game 2 27th in scoring with 103 points per game, 15th in rebounds with 43 per game, 20th in AST/TO ratio with 1.4, and 18thy in blocks with 4.5

Our prediction for Sunday, October 23rd is…. Blazers 115 - Lakers 103

Bet on the Blazers on the moneyline.  The Lakers are a measuring cup of bad feelings and they will keep filling it until someone dumps it out.  The best story would be the Lakers losing YET AGAIN.  And oftentimes the best story does win games.

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The Lakers are 5-14 ATS at home when the line is +3 to -3 the last 3 seasons.

The L:akers are 29-51 ATS after playing a home game.

The Blazers are 2-0 ATs as an underdog this season.

Blazers: SG Damian Lilliard.  Rumors of Damian Lilliard’s demise from lingering injury are NOT true.  I may have spread them to begin with, but Damian unloaded 41 points on the Phoenix Suns and looks rested and ready to take on the world.

Statistical Leaders:  PG Patrick Beverley.  A matchup against Lilliard is a tall order.  If Beverley can hold his head up high after the game?... Maybe the Lakers have a chance this season (after the Indiana trade)

Blazers: Chauncey “who me?” Billups

Lakers: Darvin “let’s be positive” Ham