NBA Betting Trends: Lakers vs. Pistons

NBA Betting Trends: Lakers vs. Pistons

The Los Angeles Lakers (23-14, 6-12 away) will kick off a 3-game road trip on Tuesday (3/6) when they travel to Detroit to take on the Pistons (12-26, 9-11 home).  The Lakers are looking for their fourth consecutive win overall after handling the Miami Heat on Sunday (3/4) and aiming for their sixth straight victory against the Pistons.  However, LAL is just 5-13 ATS on the road this year while Detroit posts a respectable 11-8-1 record ATS at home.

The Lakers come into tonight’s game relatively healthy, besides the fact that Kobe Bryant is playing with a mask to protect a broken nose.  The mask does not seem to be hindering his performance in any way, as he’s averaging 34 points-a-game over the last 3 games.  For the Pistons, guard Ben Gordon and forward Charlie Villanueva are both dealing with ankle injuries but are likely to play.  Our Premium and All-Pro members have access to breaking injury alerts, but all members can check in with our NBA injury page to check a player’s status prior to tip-off.

The Lakers opened as a 5-point favorite at the market-setting Cris sportsbook and according to Sports Insights’ NBA Betting Trends, are currently receiving 90% of spread wagers and 85% of moneyline bets.  The lopsided betting percentage on the Lakers has only pushed the line up a half point to 5.5 at Cris.  While unevenly bet games are common, it is rare to find a team garnering less than 10% of spread bets, which is what the Pistons are currently hovering around.

While most of the marketplace is offering this game at -5.5, some sportsbooks such as SIA and Carib offer the line at 6, while MGM Mirage offers 5.  The difference in odds around the marketplace once again demonstrates the importance of shopping for the best line.

Positive system plays have been triggered on both sides of this matchup– Heritage and Carib triggered Smart Money plays on Detroit at 5 and 5.5, while Pinnacle triggered a Steam Move on the Lakers at -5.  All-Pro members have access to these system plays as well as Square Plays and Best Bets.

The following table shows the breakdown of spread betting percentages from our six contributing sportsbooks: