Sacramento Kings vs LA Lakers Game Preview, Odds, Picks & Predictions.

Two struggling outfits collide when the Sacramento Kings descend on the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday night. The NBA odds are cornered with the Lakers, but the Kings will be buoyed by a recent upset over the Miami Heat.

Game: Sacramento Kings (16-22) at Los Angeles Lakers (19-19)
Location: Crypto.com Arena
Day/Time: Tuesday, 10::30 p.m. ET
Television: NBA TV

Sacramento Kings at Los Angeles Lakers

Kings Bring the Heat

The Kings brought the heat and pulled off a big 115-113 upset over Miami to come through as the 3½-point home underdogs across betting online markets. The win marked Sacramento’s third win in the last four games and wrapped up a six-game homestay at 3-3.

De’Aaron Fox proved to be the difference-maker down the stretch, scoring 11 of his 24 points in the final six minutes of the game to lift Sacramento to victory. The Kings point guard was clutch as he connected on back-to-back floaters and then made seven straight free throws, including two that came after the Heat tied it at 113-113.

Fox finished with 14 of 15 free throws. Buddy Hield added 26 points, Damien Jones put up 18 points and 10 rebounds and Davion Mitchell scored 12 points.

De’Aaron is happy the team trusts him despite his struggles this season

Kings Postgame Live is airing right now on NBC Sports California and streaming here: https://t.co/waN2ZHPpSy pic.twitter.com/UBuLW3YliT

— Kings on NBCS (@NBCSKings) January 3, 2022

Sacramento currently ranks 10th in the West, which puts them in the play-in territory of the NBA. In their last 10 games, the Kings are 5-5 and in their last 16 games they’re 8-8.

The Kings beat the Lakers on the road earlier this season, winning 117-92 to level the series 1-1. The first meeting went the way of the Lakers in a 141-137 thriller.

Lakers Win Back-to-Back Games

The Lakers reeled off back-to-back victories over the Portland Trail Blazers and Minnesota Timberwolves to improve to a 19-19 record. Both wins came at home and improved their form to 3-1 in the last four games. However, the Lakers are 4-6 in their last 10 overall.

The Lakers defeated an undermanned Minnesota Timberwolves side 108-103 on Sunday night, but they failed to cover as the seven-point home favorites for their backers on NBA free picks. Collectively, the performance left much to be desired as they barely eked out the win. Once again, the Lakers leaned heavily on LeBron James to bail them out with the pivotal win almost single-handedly.

lebron is not human 🤯 pic.twitter.com/VkaJ8IWtTS

— buckets (@buckets) January 2, 2022

James led the team with 26 points, seven rebounds and five assists. While his streak of seven straight 30-point games ended at the weekend, he still underscored his X-factor credentials. Malik Monk added 22 points and one assist while Russell Westbrook contributed 20 points, three rebounds and five assists.

One of the biggest areas of concern for Los Angeles was rebounding. The Lakers absolutely lost that battle to the Wolves, who finished the game with a 56-28 edge. Had Minnesota’s shooting been more accurate, the outcome would have been entirely different – if not embarrassing.

The Lakers aren’t living up to preseason Las Vegas odds, which tipped the 2020 NBA champions as the second-best bet after the Brooklyn Nets to win the NBA title in 2022. As things currently stand, the Lakers are eighth in the West standings, hobnobbing with several play-in hopefuls, including the Sacramento Kings.

NBA Predictions and Picks

The Lakers will go as far as ames takes them. There’s no ifs or buts about it. One could wax lyrical about James forever. What he continues to do in the league at the age of 37 is simply astounding. When he’s on, he’s undeniable. How long he can keep this up with little help from his supporting cast is the big question.

The Lakers without Anthony Davis go into this crucial contest against Sacramento as the favorites on the NBA betting board. The moneyline odds are tipped at -270 for a home win while the Kings are tipped as the +230 underdogs to pull off the upset.

The point spread is pegged at 6½, but it remains to be seen whether it will hold at that number as game time approaches. It wouldn’t be surprising if this line moved against the Lakers, especially seeing that the Kings have the last win between the pair and are coming off an upset over Miami.

For those looking to bet the spread here for entertainment purposes, waiting to see what number is available closer to game time might prove advantageous, especially if betting Los Angeles is the angle of choice. It would be much better to get the Lakers at 6½ than at 7½ points.

As it is, the Kings are more tempting as the 7½-point underdogs. If the line moves against the Kings, going up to eight points or higher, then the Kings would be the better play for NBA picks hands down. The Lakers are flying by the skin of their teeth and winning by the slimmest of margins more often than not.

The game total is projected to 229 points. Both the Kings and Lakers are amongst the worst-ranked defenses in the league – they rank 28th and 26th, respectively. The Kings are yielding an average of 113.7 points per game while the Kings are yielding 111.9 points per game. Given their woes on the defensive side of the ball, it’s hard to envision a low-scoring affair between this pair.

The over has cashed in four of the last six Los Angeles games and it has cashed in three of Sacramento’s last six games. It’s gone 1-1 in the last two games between this pair.