The Phoenix Suns will try to hold onto fourth place in the Western Conference standings when they face the Los Angeles Lakers on Wednesday night. Phoenix has lost four of its last five games and is coming off a 124-120 loss at Oklahoma City on Sunday. Los Angeles beat Orlando on Sunday and is a half-game back of Utah for the final spot in the Western Conference play-in tournament.
Tipoff is set for 10 p.m. ET. Phoenix is favored by 1.5 points in the latest Lakers vs. Suns odds from Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under is set at 227.5. Before entering any Suns vs. Lakers picks, you'll want to see the NBA predictions from the model at SportsLine.
The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past four-plus seasons. The model enters Week 23 of the 2022-23 NBA season a stunning 69-36 on all top-rated NBA picks this season, returning nearly $2,900. Anyone following it has seen huge returns.
Now, the model has set its sights on Lakers vs. Suns. You can head to SportsLine to see its picks. Here are several NBA betting lines for Lakers vs. Suns:
- Lakers vs. Suns spread: Lakers +1.5
- Lakers vs. Suns over/under: 227.5 points
- Lakers vs. Suns money line: Los Angeles +105, Phoenix -125
- Lakers vs. Suns picks: See picks here
Why the Lakers can cover
Los Angeles is a half-game outside the Western Conference play-in tournament picture with 10 games remaining, making every game critical down the stretch. The Lakers are coming off a 111-105 win over Orlando on Sunday after losing to Dallas on a last-second 3-pointer. Austin Reaves poured in a career-high 35 points against the Magic, with 13 of those coming in the fourth quarter.
Reaves is averaging 25 points, five rebounds and five assists over his last three games during the continued absence of LeBron James (foot). Anthony Davis scored 37 points and grabbed 21 rebounds against Phoenix in November, and he is expected to play on Wednesday (foot). The Suns have lost four of their last five games and have failed to cover the spread in all five of those contests.
Why the Suns can cover
Phoenix won a trio of road games earlier this month, beating Charlotte and Chicago by double digits before taking down Dallas in a 130-126 thriller. The Suns are only one game ahead of the Clippers for fourth place in the Western Conference standings, so they are not lacking motivation right now. They let a 15-point lead slip away against Oklahoma City on Sunday, as Deandre Ayton (hip) and Kevin Durant (ankle) were both sidelined and will be out again on Wednesday.
Devin Booker stepped up with 46 points on 18-of-28 shooting against the Thunder, reaching the 40-point mark for the seventh time this season. He is averaging 34.1 points and is shooting 57.4% from the floor in nine games this month, while Landry Shamet had 10 points against Oklahoma City in his first game back after a 25-game absence due to a foot injury. Phoenix has won both meetings against the Lakers this season and has won nine straight in the series overall, covering the spread in eight of those wins.
How to make Lakers vs. Suns picks
The model has simulated Suns vs. Lakers 10,000 times and the results are in. We can tell you that the model is leaning Under, and it's also generated a point-spread pick that is hitting in almost 70% of simulations. You can only see the pick at SportsLine.
So who wins Lakers vs. Suns? And which side of the spread is hitting almost 70% of the time? Visit SportsLine to see which side of the Suns vs. Lakers spread to jump on, all from the advanced model that has crushed its NBA picks, and find out.
