Hawks vs Lakers Picks and Predictions: Lake Show Keeps Streaking

The Los Angeles Lakers have won four of their last five games and will now look to stay hot against the Atlanta Hawks on Friday. LeBron James will be the biggest star on the floor in this one, but Trae Young has been known for stealing the show. 

Will Atlanta’s young star help his team pull out a big victory at Crypto.com Arena? Find out in our Hawks vs. Lakers NBA picks and predictions for January 7. 

Hawks vs Lakers odds

Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.

The Lakers opened as 2.5-point favorites in this meeting with the Hawks, but they’re now laying only 2 at some sportsbooks. The total, meanwhile, can be found at anywhere between 225 and 227. It opened at 225.5. 

Use the live odds widget above to track any future line movements right until tip-off and be sure to check out the full NBA odds before betting to ensure you get the best number.

Hawks vs Lakers predictions

• Prediction: Lakers -2 (-110)
• Prediction: Over 225 (-110)
• Best bet: Lakers -2 (-110)

Predictions made on 01/7/2022 at 12:30 a.m. ET.
Click on each prediction to jump to the full analysis.

Hawks vs Lakers game info

• Location: Crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA
• Date: Friday, January 7, 2022
• Tip-off: 10:00 p.m. ET
• TV: ESPN

Hawks vs Lakers betting preview

Injuries

Hawks: Trae Young G (Questionable), Bogdan Bogdanovic G (Questionable), John Collins F (Questionable), Jalen Johnson F (Questionable), Solomon Hill F (Out), De’Andre Hunter F (Out).
Lakers: Anthony Davis F (Out), Kendrick Nunn G (Out).
Find our latest NBA injury reports.

Betting trend to know

The Lakers are 4-1 against the spread in their last five games. Find more NBA betting trends for Hawks vs. Lakers.

Hawks vs Lakers picks and predictions

Our predictions are compiled from the analysis of the spread and total and are indications of where we are leaning for this game.
Our best bet is the play that we like the most for this game, which we would actually put some of our bankroll behind.

Spread analysis

The Hawks are likely going to get Young back in this game, but there’s no guarantee that he’ll be feeling completely healthy. And even if he is, he’s catching the Lakers at the wrong time. Sure, Young should be able to outplay Russell Westbrook by a significant amount in this one, but LeBron is playing at an absurdly high level for Los Angeles right now. Coming into this game, the superstar has had at least 31 points in eight of his last nine games. He has been especially productive as a small-ball center over that stretch, and he’s going to want to assert himself with Young on the opposing team. And without De’Andre Hunter, the Hawks aren’t going to have many options that are capable of guarding him. 

Atlanta happens to be tied for just 25th in the league in defensive rating this season, so they aren’t doing a great job on that end. With that in mind, the Hawks are likely to lose some Lakers shooters in this game. That makes this a contest in which you’ll want to keep an eye on Malik Monk. The former Kentucky star is really coming into his own for Los Angeles as of late, as he’s averaging 23.0 points per game over his last two — and has had at least 20 in four of his last six. Monk is scorching hot from three and has given the Lakers a much-needed jolt on the perimeter. He should help them keep rolling in a very winnable home game. 

Prediction: Lakers -2 (-110) 

Over/Under analysis

The Over has hit in five of the Lakers’ last seven games, and this just isn’t a team that has played well on the defensive end all year. Los Angeles has, however, picked things up on the offensive end recently, which is why the team has been able to string together some wins coming into this one. With the Lakers clicking on the offensive end, it’s not likely that they’ll slow down against a Hawks team that has been a disaster on the defensive end. And it doesn’t hurt that the Hawks can be explosive offensively, too. 

Atlanta has played extremely high-scoring games against teams that pass the ball well, as the Over is 11-3 when the Hawks face teams that average at least 23.0 assists per game this season. The average total points scored in those games has been 233.9 points per game, which is well Over the number placed on this one. Overall, this should be a fun game to watch, with both teams making a lot of shots under the bright lights. 

Prediction: Over 225 (-110)

Best bet

The Hawks are 0-6 against the spread in their last six games following a straight-up win and they’re also 4-13 ATS against teams with winning records on the season. Meanwhile, the Lakers are 5-2 against the spread in their last seven games versus teams with losing records. On top of that, the Lakers are 8-2 straight-up and 6-4 ATS in their last 10 games against the Hawks. 

What this game really boils down to is the fact that Atlanta is just miserable defensively, and it’s hard to imagine LeBron losing to a team like this one. Look for him to put the team on his back, and don’t be surprised if some of the Lakers' role players step up and knock down some big shots. 

Pick: Lakers -2 (-110)

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