The NBA’s two most iconic franchises meet for one of their biannual matchups on Thursday night at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
The pregame narrative: LeBron James remains a steady scorer for the Lakers, and I expect him to at least hit the 20-point milestone tonight. I’m also backing player props on Jrue Holiday and Derrick White for this +370 ticket.
Check out my Celtics vs. Lakers same-game parlay predictions for Jan. 23.
Celtics vs. Lakers predictions
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Parlay: Under 225.5 points + LeBron over 19.5 points + Holiday over 3.5 rebounds + White over 1.5 threes (+370)
Under 225.5 points (-220): The Lakers have hit this under in five of their past six home games. And given how unders-friendly the Celtics have been on the road, I think this is a worth alt total to take.
Unders are 15-6-0 (71.4%) when Boston plays on the road this season, per Team Rankings. That’s the highest rate in the NBA.
The Celtics did sneak past this total last night in a 117-113 win over the Clippers, but perhaps the back-to-back will slow their scoring pace on Thursday.
Boston has hit the under in eight of 11 games this season when playing with a rest disadvantage.
SGP legs
LeBron over 19.5 points (-225): LeBron’s scoring average is at a 20-year low (not an exaggeration), but he’s still putting up 23.7 points per game.
His ceiling as a scorer isn’t nearly as high as it used to be, but one of LeBron’s greatest accomplishments has been his ability to maintain a steady floor of production.
- LeBron has 20+ points in 25/38 games this year.
- He’s averaging 25.9 PPG since Dec. 4, scoring 18+ points in 17/17 games in that span.
Boston has a top-five defensive rating and is a tough matchup for most. But the King tends to get his. He’s cashed this prop in five of six games against the Celtics since the 2020-21 season.
Holiday over 3.5 rebounds (-186): Holiday missed last night’s game with a shoulder injury, so there’s no guarantee he’ll be on the floor tonight. As of this writing, the Celtics hadn’t yet released their Thursday injury report.
If Holiday does play, though, he should be the freshest guy on the team. And he’ll be in a great spot to hit this rebound total.
- Holiday has 4+ rebounds in 8/9 games since Jan. 3.
- He’s averaging 4.4 RPG this year.
- He’s cashed this bet in 6/6 games vs. Los Angeles since the 2021-22 season.
White over 1.5 threes (-420): It’s been an atrocious stretch of 3-point shooting for White, who owns a 23.5 3PT% over his past eight games.
Still, his shot volume is so high that canning a pair of 3s should be a nightly occurrence.
White has cashed this bet in four straight games despite the nightmarish efficiency. And on the season, he’s gone over 1.5 threes in 35 of 42 matchups.
If you remove this leg, the SGP odds sink from +370 to +245. With that in mind, I’m happy to tack it on.
Picks made at 11:40 a.m. ET 01/23/2025
Jordan enjoys writing data-driven game previews and analysis articles — especially for MLB markets or NFL/NBA props. And as a proud Ohio University grad, he’ll always have a soft spot for college sports (especially if the Bobcats are involved). Previous stops include mlb.com, Sportsnet and The Athletic.