NBA Odds: L.A. Lakers vs Charlotte Bobcats Preview & Pick
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Los Angeles Lakers vs. Charlotte Bobcats
Date: Monday, February 14, 7:00 p.m. ET
Venue: Time Warner Cable Arena, Charlotte, North Carolina
Broadcast: KCAL, SS
Lakers vs. Bobcats lines from Bodog.com
Lakers: -5
Bobcats: +5
Total: 188
Check Out Our Indepth NBA ATS Betting Stats For This Game —>
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The Charlotte Bobcats face a brutal challenge with the Los Angeles Lakers coming to town on Monday. Still, Charlotte has actually excelled as an underdog against the spread over its past few games, so anything is possible.
Charlotte (23-31, 26-26-2 ATS) continues to play incredibly mediocre basketball. The Bobcats are 6-6 in their pats 12 games. The good news is they are showing some life against the spread lately. After winning 88-86 as an eight-point underdog in Atlanta on Saturday, the team improved to 3-1 against the spread in its last four games. All three wins came as underdogs, with their lone loss in that span coming as 6.5-point favorites against New Jersey.
There are warning signs that the team could be headed for a slide, however. Charlotte has been boosted by a breakout season by guard D.J. Augustin, but teams are taking notice—and starting to shut him down. Augustin is third on the team with 14.4 points per game this season, but he’s averaged just 7.7 points over his last four games, including three games in single-figures. Augustin has made just 10 of his 38 field goal attempts in that span, and its obvious teams are making a greater effort to take him out of the game.
Los Angeles (38-17, 25-30 ATS) was finally building some momentum with a 4-0 run both straight up and against the spread, but it came to an end with Sunday’s 89-75 loss in Orlando.
In all likelihood, the team is just running a little flat. Sunday was the Lakers’ fifth consecutive road game, part of a seven-game swing. It showed in L.A.’s shooting percentages; the Lakers hit just 39 percent of their field goals, 47 percent of their free throws and went just 2-for-16 from the three-point line.
Even with the loss, Los Angeles remains playing great defense. The team hasn’t allowed more than 100 points in six straight games, giving up just 89.8 points per game in that span.
This is the first meeting of the season for these teams. Oddly, Charlotte has enjoyed a ton of success against the Lakers, going 7-3 in their past 10 meetings—including a ridiculous 9-1 record against the spread. For whatever reason, Charlotte matches up well with Los Angeles. Considering the Bobcats are playing so well as underdogs right now, it makes sense to roll the dice.
Trends:
Under is 6-2 in LAL last 8 vs. NBA Southeast.
CHAR are 22-7 ATS in their last 29 vs. NBA Pacific.
CHAR are 4-12-1 ATS in their last 17 Mon. games.
LAL are 1-10 ATS in the last 11 meetings.
Underdog is 10-1 ATS in the last 11 meetings.
Los Angeles vs. Charlotte pick: Bobcats
Ian Van Den Hurk has covered amateur and pro sports for years, including a successful run handicapping anything from football to mixed martial arts.
