National Basketball Association

NBA odds: How the Lakers' odds moved throughout their disappointing season

Published Apr. 6, 2022 6:46 p.m. ET

The sub-.500 Lakers are officially out of the NBA playoffs. For fans, watching this season unfold was as disappointing as watching LeBron pass up a game-winning layup for a bricked Carmelo 3-pointer. And for gamblers who wagered on L.A. throughout the year, it wasn't much better.

According to FOX Sports Research, the Lakers went 15-27 against the spread (ATS) as favorites this year. Meaning gamblers who took Los Angeles to cover as favorites had an approximate -31.7% return on investment. Betting L.A. to cover as underdogs didn't exactly put pockets back in the black either. As dogs, the squad went 17-19 ATS for a -9.7% ROI.

Simply put, one of the NBA's most valuable and hyped franchises gave bettors almost no value all season long.

Let's dig a little deeper and take a glimpse at how the Lakers' betting odds moved all season to understand how LeBron & Co. got here (with all odds via FOX Bet).

THE LAKERS' CHAMPIONSHIP ODDS THROUGHOUT THE SEASON

Preseason: +400 (bet $10 to win $50 total)
December 1: +1000 (bet $10 to win $110 total)
February 1: +1500 (bet $10 to win $160 total)
All-Star Break: +3000 (bet $10 to win $310 total)
March 1: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)
April 1: +15000 (bet $10 to win $1,510 total)
April 5: Eliminated from playoffs

At the beginning of the season, FOX Bet had the Lakers' odds to win it all listed at +400 — second-best behind only Brooklyn. After a three-game losing streak in the middle of November and then a triple-overtime loss to Sacramento toward the end of the month, L.A.'s odds to win the title lengthened to +1000.

Los Angeles skidded into All-Star weekend, as the Lakers won only one of their four matchups right before the break. This continued spiral lengthened the squad's odds to +3000. Then came the injuries. With both Anthony Davis and LeBron sidelined and poor performances by Russell Westbrook, the team's odds to hang an 18th banner slid even further to +4000 by March. But it didn't stop there.

By the beginning of April, L.A.'s odds to hoist another championship trophy got as high as +15000. That is when reality set in that one of the league's most storied organizations would fall short of the promised land. And on April 5th, Coach Frank Vogel's Los Angeles Lakers were eliminated from playoff contention after posting a 31-48 record.

From a gambling perspective, this season's disappointments are more the norm than anomaly since James has been a Laker. The 2019-2020 season was the only year in which L.A. covered as underdogs during the regular season. That season, the team went 7-2 ATS in the category — the year they went on to win a championship in the Bubble. The 2018, 2020 and 2021 seasons all netted negative returns when taking L.A. to cover as underdogs.

While the Lakers still have three games left against the Warriors, Thunder and Nuggets, at 33-46 ATS, gamblers are probably steering clear of sprinkling any more cash on the struggling group.

So now that the Lakers are out of the playoffs, will the front office blow up the superstar core of James, Davis and Westbrook? Will LeBron leave Los Angeles if that means he gets a chance to play with Bronny elsewhere? Or will L.A. fire coach Vogel and move on?

Stay tuned to FOX Bet for more odds because this NBA offseason is sure to be full of surprises!

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