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NBA Odds – Pick Lakers

Online betting players should know better than to wager against Kobe Bryant at Madison Square Garden, where he’s played very well in the past. Bryant leads his Lakers into the mecca of basketball on Friday night to face a Knicks team that has struggled on offense as of late, and combined with their inability to stop Bryant, it should be another loss to the defending champions for New York.

WHAT: NBA betting

WHEN: Friday, January 22, 8:00 PM ET

WHERE: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY

KEY STATS: Los Angeles has won five straight against New York

The Storyline - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

The Lakers (32-9 as of Thursday) kick off an eight-game road trip with a showdown in Cleveland on Thursday, and then they head to MSG, where Kobe Bryant went for 61 points in last season’s visit to the Big Apple. The Knicks (17-24) have dropped four of their last six, but they’ve scored 100 points or more in just one of those games.

Offensive Matchups - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

The Lakers have been looking for players to step up as Bryant has suffered through a painful finger injury, along with back spasms. Andrew Bynum has averaged 18.0 points over his last five games, and even Shannon Brown is dropping 13.2 points in increased minutes for the Lakers. Pau Gasol just returned from a hamstring injury, and the Lakers should have plenty of weapons.

The Knicks are going through an offensive slump for their standards, and sometimes, they fall in love with the three-point shot, which they’re hitting 34.2% of the time. But how about the progress of Danilo Gallinari? The Italian has more than doubled his productivity to 14.8 points, and even though he takes some ill-advised shots, that’s to be expected in Mike D’Antoni’s system.

Betting Edge: Draw

Defensive Matchups - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

Only one of the Lakers’ last five opponents has scored 100 points or more, and that was in San Antonio. Led by the tenacity of Bryant, the Lakers are a very disciplined team, and they’ve improved since the beginning of the season. When they decide to lock down a team, the Lakers are unbeatable.

The Knicks are actually getting better at this end of the floor, but there’s not really one player that you could call a stopper. David Lee surely works hard on the boards, pulling down 11.2 rebounds per game. But who is going to try and slow down Bryant?

Betting Edge: Lakers

Notable Injuries - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

Bynum (flu) may sit out Thursday’s game in Cleveland, but he should be fine for the Knicks. Sasha Vujacic (hamstring) doesn’t play that much, while Bryant (finger, back) and Gasol (hamstring) will play.

Eddy Curry (knee) is done for six weeks after surgery, but now the Knicks will be even more hard-pressed to get rid of his massive contract.

Betting Edge: Knicks

Betting Prediction - Lakers vs Knicks Betting Odds

The Lakers should be favored in your Sportsbook as they’ve won five in a row over the Knicks, and seven of their last 10 at MSG. The Knicks will be praying that Cleveland wears down the Lakers on Thursday night, but the Lakers are a respectable 7-3 in the second half of back-to-back games. The Knicks must get out and run early to try and take advantage of a tired Los Angeles team, but Bryant usually comes up big at Madison Square Garden, anyway.

Craig’s Pick: Lakers

For more  tips and analysis in NBA basketball, check out Craig’s picks in BetOnline’s The Betting Edge. For more on the Lakers vs Knicks matchup, please visit our sports section.