Betting on the Lakers

Betting on the Lakers in California is only beginning its journey to legalization. As of this writing, sports fans can only use promotional sweepstakes sites such as Fliff Sportsbook to emulate the sportsbook experience. 

If and when California sports betting becomes legal, bettors will be able to place wagers on the Lakers. The team didn’t fare all that well during the 2022 season, earning 11th place in the Western Conference with a 33-49 record. But a team doesn’t need to be a top performer to be bettable. Fortunately, there are myriad betting options to be had for Lakers fans in California. On this page, we’ll cover everything you need to know about betting on the Lakers. 

LA Lakers Odds at the Best Sportsbooks

Odds are updated as of Nov. 2, 2022.

Where Can You Bet on the Lakers?

Right now, there are no online or retail sportsbooks in the state of California. They aren’t legal yet. Once legalized, you can also expect Lakers sports betting promo codes in California. 

Online Sportsbooks

There are currently no online sportsbooks live in California. However, three neighboring states offer them. Each comes with its own caveats, and they’ll even offer some Lakers sports betting bonuses.

Arizona offers the most open sports betting market with numerous big-name sportsbooks live. It’s the best bet for CA bettors who live in the southern end of the state. 

Nevada has online sports betting, but it requires in-person registration. This option is best saved for a trip to Vegas or another Nevada casino with a sportsbook app.

Oregon has one sportsbook: DraftKings. DraftKings is a solid choice for CA bettors who live near the northern border of the state. 

Retail Sportsbooks

California doesn’t have any retail sportsbooks, but the three neighboring states mentioned above all do. You can bet at any of them provided you’re willing to make the trip.

If California authorizes retail sportsbooks, expect many of the state’s tribal casinos to open land-based sports betting hubs. 

Sweepstakes and Free-to-Play Sportsbooks

California has a few alternative options while the state’s bettors await full-fledged online sportsbooks. Fliff Sportsbook is a sweepstakes site that lets you place wagers with virtual currency and even win cash prizes.

oddFlex is a free-to-play sportsbook where you bet virtual currency but cannot win prizes. Eventually, you’ll be able to sell your picks to other bettors on the platform. Both are legal and available to California bettors and sports fans. 

How NBA Betting Odds are Calculated

Sportsbooks have full trading teams dedicated to watching games and setting odds and lines for bettors. There are numerous factors that can impact the odds of a given game, including past performance, player injuries, roster moves, and even public opinion in the form of betting. 

If sportsbooks are taking lots of bets on the Lakers to beat the Pistons, for example, they might increase the Pistons odds to make that side of the bet look more enticing. For this reason, it’s important to take all odds with a healthy dose of caution and place measured, researched bets. 

Here’s a quick example to help you understand how odds work. Let’s say you’re betting on the Lakers moneyline when they play the Bulls. The odds might look like this:

• Lakers +210
• Bulls -250

In this case, the Bulls are the “favorite” to win because they have negative odds. This means the Lakers odds offer a better potential payout, but the sportsbook believes they have an uphill battle ahead of them. 

In this example, a $100 bet on the Lakers would pay $210 if they won. Conversely, you would need to bet $250 on the Bulls to secure a $100 win if successful. 

Odds can and do change as new information becomes available and as bettors place their wagers. Keep your eyes peeled for advantageous odds moves to maximize your potential wins when betting on the Lakers or any NBA team. 

What Kinds of Bets Can be Placed on the LA Lakers?

There are numerous bets you can place on the LA Lakers or any other NBA team. Sportsbooks offer a ton of coverage for NBA fans. For example, you can bet on the Lakers win total for the 2022-23 season. Here’s how those odds look at three major sportsbooks:

Odds from DraftKings are updated as of Nov. 2, 2022.

Aside from win totals, which falls under the futures bet category, there are many other wagers you can place on NBA games. 

Spread, Moneyline, Total

These bets are the trifecta, the trio of bets you’ll see available for most team sports. 

The point spread gives phantom points to the underdog team and gives a disadvantage to the favorite team. So you might see odds like so:

• LA Lakers -5.5 (-115)
• Chicago Bulls +5.5 (-105)

In this scenario, you would need the Lakers to win by six points or more for the bet to hit. The Bulls, however, would need to either 1) win or 2) lose by five points or fewer to cover the spread and win. 

Moneyline bets, meanwhile, are simple wagers on a single team to win. You’ll typically get worse odds on the favorite because they are more likely to win while betting the underdog might net you a nicer payout. 

Totals bets involve wagering on the combined scoring total of both teams. You usually bet the over or the under based on whether you think the game will be high-scoring or low-scoring. 

What is an NBA Futures Bet?

A futures bet is —you guessed it—a bet on an outcome in the future. Sure, that technically could mean any sports bet. But futures tend to offer odds on things that are further down the line than tonight’s game, for example. So you might find futures odds on the eventual championship winner or conference champion. You might find futures odds on things like a player’s point total or a team’s win total, as we outlined above. 

Futures odds change throughout the season based on a team’s performance. You can make an NBA championship futures bet, but if the team is performing well, chances are the odds will have a worse payout than if you bet on the team earlier in the season. It’s a risk-reward balance you have to manage when betting on futures. 

How to Place Prop Bets on the Lakers

Prop bets don’t involve wagering on the overall outcome of a game like totals, spreads, or moneylines. Instead, they let bettors try to guess hyper-specific outcomes, such as how many three-pointers a certain player makes, who scores the first basket, or how many assists a player will get in a given game. 

NBA props run the gamut; there are tons of options to choose from. If you have a favorite player, peruse his props and place a bet on the one that looks most enticing. Or, if you’re feeling spicy, you can combine multiple player props into a same-game parlay. 

How to Bet on the Lakers in California

Once sportsbooks launch in California, placing a bet on the Lakers will be simple. Here’s a rundown of the typical process in legal sports betting markets. 

1. Download your preferred sportsbook app or visit the desktop site.
   1. If on desktop, be prepared to download a separate geolocation plugin. 
2. Sign up for an account by providing personal details, including:
   1. First and last name
   2. Email address
   3. Home address (doesn’t need to be in CA)
   4. Phone number
   5. Date of birth
   6. Social Security Number
   7. Photo ID
3. Make a deposit, keeping in mind you may get a bonus when you first fund your account. 
4. Find the available lines on the Lakers, either by searching or navigating through the sportsbook’s menu. 
5. Select your desired bet or bets to add them to your betslip. 
6. Select “place bet” and wait for the sportsbook to confirm your wager is locked in. 

Once you’ve done that, you can watch the game and hope for a win and repeat the process from steps 4-6 as much as you’d like. Remember to bet responsibly. 

How to Bet on the NBA Finals in California

If you’d like to place a futures bet on the Lakers (or any other team) to win the NBA Finals, the process is very similar to what we listed above. Navigate to the “futures” section of the sportsbook’s NBA page, and you should find all the available markets listed there. 

You can bet on the NBA Finals, conference winners, division winners, whether a team will make the playoffs, and much more. 

Keep in mind that Finals futures bets are risky, but they come with good potential payouts. After all, there are 30 NBA teams, and only one will win the Finals. Predicting it correctly would win you a hefty sum. 

You can bet on any team to win the NBA Finals; it doesn’t have to be your home team. 

Betting on the Lakers FAQs