Game Time: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, February 5th, 2022 

Venue: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, California

Where to Watch:  ABC

DraftKings:  Spread:  Lakers -1.5 

BetMGM:  Spread:  NL

VegasInsider:  Spread: Lakers -1.5; O/U 212.5

WynnBet: Spread:  Lakers -2; O/U 212.5

Knicks: 24-28, 12th place Eastern Conference

Lakers: 25-28, 9th place Western Conference 

This wasn’t the way it was supposed to go.  A non-conference matchup between the two biggest cities in the nation… in a newly named arena that holds the most Championship banners of all time.… featuring the best player of the last 19 NBA seasons… and his team loaded with all-stars… against the visiting upstarts that shocked the world last season when they came into their own to play deep into  the playoffs they weren’t supposed to even make.  Only it’s not happening… not really.  In reality the Knicks were good for just that one stretch at the end of last year and had a brief playoff run.  They haven’t been good since.  The roster is unbalanced.  PF Julius Randle was the hero of NYC last year… this year he bristles with resentment at having to play for fans so spoiled that they boo their own team.  The Knicks are losing games.  The Knicks are not in the top ten in the East.   LeBron and his Lakers took the Championship in “the bubble”, but injuries, age and having an agent as a GM are all beginning to take their toll.  The Lakers have no cap space, no draft picks, and very few young players other teams might want in trade… and despite Lebron James playing excellent basketball at an advanced age (29.1 ppg) the Lakers are losing games.  The Lakers are not in the top 8 in the West.  It’s a sad state of affairs… the good news is the numbers will show us which team is a great betting opportunity.

The New York Knicks have only won 3 of their last ten games.  PF Julius Randle started the season as the team’s celebrated star and though he still leads the team in points, assists, and rebounds… his numbers have dipped noticeably.  Last year’s 24.1 ppg and 10.2 rpg is this year's 18.5 ppg and 9.9 rpg.  Julius flipped the bird at the Garden crowd a few weeks back and it has gotten so frosty that some NY fans are calling for his trade as the deadline approaches.  Sources tell me he would welcome a trade.   They are 5-5 ATS over the last ten.

The Los Angeles Lakers lost their last game to the Los Angeles Clippers in heartbreaking fashion.  The battle of city and arena roommates ended with 6 lead changes in the last two minutes of play.  Clippers PG Reggie Jackson sunk the last made shot… Lakers PF Anthony Davis missed the last shot of regulation (it rimmed out) for a 111-110 loss for the Lakers.  The Lakers have now won only 4 of their last ten games.  To make matters worse, SF LeBron James is out with left knee soreness with NO TIMETABLE for his return.  Joining him on the injured list halfway through the Clipper game was SF Carmelo Anthony who is experiencing Hamstring tightness.  If that injury persists for LeBron all is lost.  The Lakers are out of moves if they have to rely on PF Anthony Davis and PG Russell Westbrook the rest of the way.  The New Orleans Pelicans are a dumpster fire but the good news for them is the next couple of Lakers draft picks and swaps they got for Anthony Davis may be worth something.

Al McMordie SWEPT THE BOARD  with Bucknell and Vanderbilt, and is back in action in the NBA tonight. Don't miss Big Al's NBA Non-Division Game of the Month, as it's out of a 100% Perfect, 12-0 ATS angle. Get the 13th Winner in a Row right here, and WIN BIG on Thursday!Go get it! Get Big Als’ picks right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers. NCAAF, NFL, MLB, college football… get positive value from all your bets! Expert picks!  Fun fact… winning a wager is much better than making a wager!

The Knicks are 24-28 on the season, but 25-27 ATS.  They have logged 23 Overs and 29 Unders.  They are 11-13 in road games.

The Lakers are 25-28 on the season, but 23-30 ATS.  They have notched 29 Overs, 23 Unders, and 1 Push. They are 16-12 in home games.

The Knicks are 27th in scoring with 104.2 ppg, 10th in rebounds with 45.6 per game, and 26th in AST/TO ratio with 1.6. They are shooting 27th in FG%, 11th iin 3PT%, and 25th in FT%.  They are not bad on defense where they rank 6th while allowing 104.9 ppg from opponents.

The Lakers are 12th in scoring with 110.7 ppg, 16th rebounds with 44.7 per game, and 24th in AST/TO ratio with 1.6.  They aren’t playing defense well at all … they rank 27th while allowing 112.2 ppg from opponents.

Our prediction for Saturday, February 5th is….  Knicks 117 - Lakers 115

The Lakers will be without Lebron and Carmelo… they will be kicking themselves for dropping the close game to the Clippers… it is all not going well.  To top it all off the Lakers are a bad defensive team which is exactly the remedy for the Knicks struggling offense.  Plus Julius Randle will be out for absolute vengeance as he usually is in games against the Lakers.  

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New York is 4-1 ATS versus the Lakers over the last 3 seasons.

4 of 5 games in this series have gone UNDER the last 3 seasons.

New York is 40-17 ATS in all games the second half of the season the last 3 seasons.

New York is 8-2 ATS when playing with 2 days of rest this season.

Knicks: PG Derrick Rose (ankle) Out 

Lakers: SF LeBron James (knee) Out ** SF Carmelo Anthony (hamstring) Out ** PG Kendrick Nunn (ankle) Out indefinitely

Knicks: SF RJ Barrett, PF Julius Randle, C Mitchell Robinson, PG Kemba Walker, SG Evan Fournier

Lakers: SF Malik Monk, PF Stanley Johnson, C Anthony Davis, PG Russell Westbrook, SG Avery Bradley

Knicks

Points: Julius Randle 18.5

Assists: Julius Randle 5.1

Rebounds: Julius Randle 9.9

Steals: Nerlens Noel 1.2

Blocks: Mitchell Robinson 1.6

Lakers

Points: LeBron James 29.1

Assists: Russell Westbrook 7.7

Rebounds: Anthony Davis 9.9

Steals: LeBron James 1.6

Blocks: Anthony Davis 2.2

Knicks: Tom Thibodeau 

Lakers: Frank Vogel