The Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics are facing each other for the second and final time this season. The Boston Celtics lead the season series, winning the first encounter in a very thrilling overtime battle. The stars came out to ball in their first encounter this season as Jason Tatum led the Celtics with a game-high 44 points, while Lakers’ star big man Anthony Davis dropped 37 points to lead the Lakers. The scoreline does not tell the tale of the game, as a massive lead change and thrilling comebacks highlighted it. Seeing that the Lakers might be in full health for their second encounter to close the regular season series, this sure will be another exciting matchup. 

Los Angeles Lakers’ Latest Result 

• In their most recent league game, the Los Angeles Lakers were up against the San Antonio Spurs, and fortunately, they had their star center Anthony Davis back in the lineup. Despite heading into the game from the bench, he showed no sign of rustiness as he led the Lakers in scoring with a 21 points, 12 rebounds double-double. 
• Lebron James, who just got relieved by the return of Anthony Davis, was one rebound short of a triple-double as he dropped 20 points, nine boards, and 11 assists. Patrick Beverly had 18 points, while Russell Westbrook added 14 points off the bench.

Despite winning this game, the Los Angeles Lakers are still struggling for a spot in the play-in, as they remain 13th in the Western Conference. 

Boston Celtics’ Latest Result

• The Celtics are struggling lately. Most of this is attributed to them being without some key players due to injury. Their recent outing saw them welcome the New York Knicks at the TD Garden. The Celtics, who went into the game on a two-game losing streak, could not do enough to avoid extending that streak as the Knicks handed them a 121-118 loss at home. 
• Jason Tatum led the Celtics in points with 35 points and added 14 boards. Jaylen Brown added 22 points and nine boards, but the key moment of the game was his missing a pair of free throws that could have essentially tied the game in overtime. 
• Derrick White added 15 points, while Malcolm Brogdon from the bench dropped 10 points.
• The Boston Celtics were without their key perimeter defender Marcus Smart in this game, which was evident. They will now have to find a way to adjust to playing without him, as he might still miss out on a few games, and if they will break their current three-game losing streak, someone has to step up for him. 

Los Angeles Lakers Projected Starting Lineup

• Point Guard: Patrick Beverly
• Shooting Guard: Dennis Schroder
• Small Forward: Troy Brown Jr
• Power Forward: Lebron James
• Center: Anthony Davis

Injury Report: Austin Reaves(hamstring) and Lonnie Walker(knee). They are questionable for this game, and the decision is until game day. 

Boston Celtics Projected Starting Lineup

• Point Guard: Killian Hayes
• Shooting Guard: Jaden Ivey
• Small Forward: Saddiq Bey
• Power Forward: Bojan Bogdanovic
• Center: Isaiah Stewart

Injury Report: Marcus Smart (ankle), Danilo Gallinari (knee). They are both listed out for this game.

Game Details

Date: Saturday, January 28, 2023

Time: 8:30 p.m. Eastern Time

Venue: TD Garden, Boston

Los Angeles Lakers Vs Boston Celtics Prediction & Tips

The Los Angeles Lakers have a majority of their squad healthy, and with the addition of Rui Hachimura to their roster, they have a new dynamic on both sides of the court. They have Anthony Davis paint’s protection back, which will automatically give them an edge in this game. The Celtics stars have been performing in recent games, but the rest of the unit is not doing as well. Being a team that relies on every player on the floor to contribute, if others do not step up, they will struggle against the Lakers. 

• The picks are the Los Angeles Lakers to win and cover the spread. Lakers win odds 1. 2.08, draw. 4.1, and on Boston win 2.82
• Our player prop is for Lebron James to score more than 30 points

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Philadelphia 76ers and Detroit Pistons are facing each other again, with only one day break. The 76ers lead the season series by two games to none as the Pistons failed to get one back despite the 76ers playing without their star big man Joel Embiid. The 76ers, without their star big man, have a win and a loss, but they did well to turn things around with a victory over the Detroit Pistons on Sunday.

The Pistons are now on a two-game losing streak, while the 76ers’ win over Pistons on Sunday Night meant they bounced back from a shock loss to the Chicago Bulls. Stick around to find out who to put your money on as the 76ers play the Pistons twice in three days. 

Philadelphia 76ers’ Latest Result 

• In their most recent league game, the Philadelphia 76ers played the Detroit Pistons without their star center Joel Embiid. In Embiid’s place, superstar guard James Harden led the 76ers with a triple-double of 20 points, 11 rebounds, and 11 assists. He participated in a variety of activities to help the Philadelphia 76ers defeat the Detroit Pistons by a score of 123-111 on Sunday.
• The return of Tyrese Maxey, who was out for almost twenty games due to a foot injury, has boosted the 76ers. He added 23 points, and Montrezl Harrell did the job in the paint by scoring 20 for the Sixers.

With this victory, Philadelphia has won four of its previous five games.

Detroit Piston’s Latest Result

• The Pistons should have bounced back from their loss to Spur when they played the 76ers. Despite playing at the Little Caesars Arena and heavily tipped as a +5.5 underdog in their last game, The Pistons lost to the 76ers by a wide margin, and Killian Hayes led Detroit in scoring with 26 points, six assists, and a block. Following a six-game losing streak, the Pistons have split their last seven games between victories and defeats.
• The Pistons’ propensity for mishandling the ball was evident in this game. They committed the same number of turnovers in this game (22) as they did in their season opener against the 76ers.
• Bojan Bogdanovic finished with 20 points, while Isaiah Stewart had 20 points and 13 rebounds.
• The Pistons, due to injuries, were without two of its three starting bigs: Jalen Duren and Marvin Bagley III, in this game. That stopped head coach Dwayne Casey from using his customary strategy of beginning small with his second unit and going large with his starting lineup.

Philadelphia 76ers’ Projected Starting Lineup

• Point Guard: James Harden
• Shooting Guard: Tyrese Maxey
• Small Forward: De’Anthony Melton
• Power Forward: Tobias Harris
• Center: Montrezl Harrell

Detroit Piston’s Projected Starting Lineup

• Point Guard: Killian Hayes
• Shooting Guard: Jaden Ivey
• Small Forward: Saddiq Bey
• Power Forward: Bojan Bogdanovic
• Center: Isaiah Stewart

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Game Details

Date: Tuesday, January 10, 2023

Time: 7:00 p.m. Eastern Time

Venue: Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia

Philadelphia 76ers Vs Detroit Pistons Prediction & Tips

The 76ers will look to make it two wins in a row when they play in the Wells Fargo Center on Tuesday. Once again, Philadelphia is the favorite in this matchup despite both teams missing key players.

A Harden masterclass has proven decisive in their most recent meeting, and the former Houston man is back to replicate his performance when they play in the comfort of their home. The Pistons will struggle without their bigs back in the lineup, and that’s why the 76ers are the favorite to win and cover the spread in this game. 

• The picks are 76ers to win and cover the spread as favorites
• Our player prop is for James Harden to score more than 25 points

Every matchup in the NBA is important, even when there’s a huge difference in the quality of the opposing team. However, some matchups come with a different intensity, either due to rivalry in their history or a battle for dominance in shared conferences. 

Here we will look at matchups that promise extreme intensity, highlight plays, drama, and entertainment beyond the norm. The 2022-23 NBA season has already seen some of those matches; an example is the most recent Christmas day specials between the Boston Celtics and the Milwaukee Bucks and the young Grizzlies team against the Warriors. We will look at the next best five matchups as the season progresses into the new year.

Los Angeles Lakers Vs Los Angeles Clippers (25 January)

Star power is everything in Los Angeles, both on and off the court. There are several stars on these two squads. LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and Russell Westbrook lead the Lakers, while Paul George and Kawhi Leonard are two of the league’s best wings for the Clippers. The Clippers have won the last nine meetings, with the Lakers’ previous victory coming in the 2020 season. The Lakers have historically dominated this rivalry, leading the overall series 150-83.

• Anthony Davis was having a monstrous season until he sustained a foot injury, and he should be back in time for this game, although his return date remains unknown.
•  Russell Westbrook is flourishing as floor general from the bench, and if he continues at this pace with Lebron James actively scoring with ease, the Lakers might end their losing streak against the Clippers.
• The Los Angeles Clippers have won their two encounters against the Lakers this season, and the Lake show will be looking to get one back in this game. 
• Paul George remains the consistent starter between the duo, as Kawhi has been carefully managed for maximum future performance in the postseason. 

Brooklyn Nets Vs Philadelphia 76ers 

The significance of this clash may be understood by recalling the blockbuster trade that the Sixers and Nets executed at the previous year’s trade deadline, which brought Ben Simmons to Brooklyn and James Harden to Philadelphia. Following the deal, the two teams only faced off once, with the Nets defeating the Sixers in Philadelphia despite Simmons’ absence from the starting lineup. This season, Simmons already returned to Philadelphia on November 22 and received nothing close to a warm welcome as the 76ers fans constantly booed him. 

• Following the sacking of Steve Nash, the Brooklyn Nets have been playing the best basketball of their life in a while. The personality change in the head coach position has helped propel the team to greater heights.
• Brooklyn Nets acquired an injured T.J. Warren from Indiana Pacers in the offseason and has nursed him back to full health; he has been incredible for them coming off the bench.
• The Duo of Joel Embiid and James Harden is working out just fine. Embiid is scoring ridiculously while Harden has embraced the playmaking position, as he even dished out his career-high assist this season.
• Tyrese Maxey should be back in full health for this game which gives the 76ers an edge.

Memphis Grizzlies Vs Golden State Warriors

There’s so much bad blood between these two teams, and it all began when they faced up in an entertaining Western Conference semifinals matchup last season. The Golden State Warriors prevailed in six games, but Grizzlies fans had different ideas. They thought that their team’s failure to win was due to Ja Morant’s injury midway through the series, which prevented him from playing in the next three games despite having put on outstanding performances in the first three. They already faced up this season in a Christmas special matchup, but the Grizzlies were humiliated as they lost the game 123-109 to a Warriors team without Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins. 

• Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins should be back in time for the second out of the four games scheduled against the Grizzlies.
• Ja Morant and the rest of the team will be aiming for a revenge game due to how they were defeated in the first matchup.

Phoenix Suns Vs Dallas Mavericks (26 January)

The rematch of the Western Conference semifinal series from last year, which Dallas won in seven games. However, the Mavericks didn’t only defy the odds by winning Game 7 on the road; to win the West finals, they utterly destroyed the top-seeded Suns. Dallas always stayed caught up and had a 46-point lead before cruising to a 33-point victory.

 Suns defeated the Mavericks in the season’s opening game, but Luka Doncic was present in their most recent meeting, which the Mavericks won 130-111. The Suns were without veteran point guard Chris Paul in that game. This game is one to watch out for, provided all the star players are healthy.

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Denver Nuggets Vs Philadelphia 76ers (28 January)

The two best big guys in the game right now, Nikola Jokic of Denver and Joel Embiid of Philadelphia, will face off. In each of the previous two seasons, these two players were first and second in the Kia MVP race, with Jokic consistently outperforming Embiid. 

Jokic, with his playmaking and scoring abilities, is the best passing big man of this generation and may be the best of all time. He serves as the offensive engine for the Nuggets. The two respect one another, evident during the MVP battle the previous season.

• One thing is sure, the aforementioned players will put up a show, with Jamal Murray and James Harden set for their little contest as floor generals. 

The games mentioned above are tipped to put you on the edge as we prepare to enter a new year of more action-packed games in the current NBA season.

If you are an avid bettor and are looking for a trusted bookmaker and great bonuses, a Free Betting Reviews article on Christmas Bonuses from trusted bookmakers can help you.

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