NBA 2022/23, Week 1 on Wednesday, 10/19/2022
The California Derby will be the second NBA game to be played in the new season. We are talking, of course, about the duel between the Golden State Warriors and the Los Angeles Lakers, two giants who are among the last three NBA champions.
The Dubs won the NBA Finals last year and would like to defend their title. In my Warriors Lakers tip, meanwhile, I concluded that a high-scoring game seems to be the most promising prediction here.
The Lakers have managed to mutate from NBA champions to a team that belongs only to league mediocrity in about 18 months.
The purple yellows have fired their coach, their two best players – James and Davis – can’t manage to stay healthy and half of the roster is paid completely exorbitant minimum salaries that block the acquisition of new players.
Why even the best sportsbooks still rank Los Angeles among the franchises eligible to win the NBA overall is beyond me personally! However, there may be an explanation for this after all …
The duo consisting of LeBron James and Anthony Davis can single-handedly win an NBA season – as already proven in 2020 – as long as the top stars stay healthy from start to finish.
Incidentally, apart from the two superstars, not a single player who wore the purple and gold jersey two years ago is in this year’s line-up. The concept of the Lakers remains the same this time, to build a strong framework around exactly these two players.
Personally, though, I don’t think the plan will work out, as LeBron James will inevitably have to deal with the “age” factor. Nevertheless, the opening game against the Warriors should still be a high-scoring affair.
Nearly a week ago, the two franchises met in a preseason clash that produced a total of 245 points, with the Lakers narrowly edging out the Warriors by three.
As if to prove my point, it was Anthony Davis, of all people, who was the driving force in the game with 28 points – even though LeBron James was not even on the floor that night.
But don’t worry, the “King” will be back in the starting line-up in time for the opening game and will thus boost the score even more. Meanwhile, it should go without saying that Golden State will also bring plenty of offensive potential with them.
The Warriors are not only the defending champions, but also the franchise that everyone else will have to beat in the 2022 season. All the key players have been retained.
In addition, the Californians have made clever trades, such as those of DiVincenzo and JaMychal Green. If Thompson and Wiseman are largely spared injuries this year, another deep push for the playoffs seems inevitable.
The only thing that has caused a bit of irritation is a punch in the face Green is said to have given his teammate Poole in training camp. But on the field, the Dubs haven’t let that incident show too much.
With my Warriors Lakers tip I try to target the most likely match scenario, but there are some interesting alternatives.
For example, various providers such as Bet365 offer a tripling of the stake, should the Lakers – as was already the case a week ago – be able to defeat the Dubs again.
The Bet365 offer code from the provider of the same name is, incidentally, a perfect “betting entry” into the basketball season that has just begun, which will continue unperturbed in the shadow of the 2022 World Cup.
Conclusion: Sooner or later, Los Angeles will have James or Davis out, setting up the start of another negative streak. But for the moment, both are fit and therefore even dangerous for the defending champions.
It is not for nothing that the Lakers already won the direct duel during the pre-season with 124:121 – and still without “The King”.
But since the best players of both teams will start on Wednesday, I expect a score that will be pushed up again – not least by an Anthony Davis, who seems to be in really good form at the moment.
My Warriors Lakers tip: Over 224.5 points!
