Celtics vs. Lakers Prediction and Odds January 23: The NBA’s Classic Rivalry Adds Another Chapter

The Boston Celtics (31-13) are in their second night of a back-to-back in the City of Angels as they prepare to face the Los Angeles Lakers (23-18) on Thursday.

The C’s took down the Los Angeles Clippers 117-113 in overtime last night, a couple of days after they beat the Golden State Warriors by 40 points. Wednesday’s victory marked their first time winning consecutive games in a couple of weeks, although they still did not look like their usual dominant selves.

The Lakers won three of their last four games but haven’t consistently beaten contending teams. However, they're 15-6 in their building and have been a force at home all year.

Here, we will preview the matchup and share our favorite Celtics vs. Lakers betting picks for Thursday.

Celtics vs. Lakers Betting Odds for Thursday, January 23

The Celtics are 17-26-1 (39.5 percent) against the spread, 9-11-1 (45 percent) ATS on the road, and 17-24-1 (41.5 percent) ATS as a favorite.

The Lakers are 20-21 (48.8 percent) ATS, 12-9 (57.1 percent) ATS at home, and 9-9 (50 percent) ATS as an underdog.

Odds for the Celtics vs. Lakers game are courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Head over to BetMGM to place your bets and Get Up to $1,500 in Bonus Bets*.

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Celtics vs. Lakers Prediction

Boston Celtics Preview

The Celtics are established. Everyone knows who they are, what they want to do, and what they can be at their best.

The problem for Beantown is they haven’t been their best for a good stretch of games. They were only seventh in net rating (+5.6) in January on account of ranking 11th in offensive and fifth in defensive rating.

While many teams would be more than pleased with those numbers, they don't represent a team that is as dominant as the Celtics have been. 

For the year, the Celtics are fourth in offensive and fifth in defensive rating. They’re also an above-average rebounding team and turned the ball over at the second-lowest frequency in the league.

Notably, Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and Jrue Holiday all did not play in Wednesday’s overtime win against the Clippers. None of the three have long-term injuries, so it’s possible all three were rested to be prepared for the second night of a back-to-back.

One of the primary reasons for Boston’s recent lull is their lackluster three-point shooting. They ranked just 20th in three-point percentage (34.9) in 2025, even falling to third in made threes per game despite being on pace to smash the all-time record for threes made in a season.

The Celtics are 5-2 straight-up and 4-3 against the spread with no days of rest between games. They’re also 7-4 SU and 4-7 ATS with a rest disadvantage, but again, they could be getting several important pieces of their rotation back and fresh.

Los Angeles Lakers Preview

The Lakers started the year a few games above .500 and remained in the same position from that point on, struggling and failing to break through as a bonafide contender. 

LA took down the Washington Wizards 111-88 its last time on the court but had a mixed bag of results before, losing to the Clippers and only beating the Brooklyn Nets by one point. They’re 15th in both offensive and defensive rating in 2025, and 13th in offensive and 23rd in defensive rating for the year.

Strangely, they’re 21st in net rating (-2.2) despite being five games above .500, which means they typically win by fine margins and lose big.

We mentioned earlier that the Lakers have been great at home, posting a record of 15-6 that is better than the home records of teams such as the Celtics, New York Knicks, and Denver Nuggets—that said, they still only have a net rating of +2.9 at home, which is 14th and well behind all of the other teams mentioned above.

One of the Lakers’ biggest areas of needed improvement is beyond the three-point line. They’re 19th in percentage allowed to their opponents and only 19th in shooting percentage themselves. 

That means they need to dominate the painted area and the free-throw battle nearly every night, or else they’re at a significant disadvantage. 

Dorian Finney-Smith and Anthony Davis will have large defensive responsibilities, while LeBron James will have to continue to orchestrate the offense at an elite level, dishing out at least eight assists in every game in 2025 and cracking double-digits in his last two games.

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Celtics vs. Lakers Betting Pick

• Celtics vs. Lakers pick: Celtics -5.5 (-110) at BetMGM

Boston is much better than LA, but it has not been anywhere its best recently. It’s also on the second night of not just a back-to-back, but an overtime back-to-back.

Conversely, the only thing the Lakers are consistent with is their inconsistency. Austin Reaves has had several breakout games recently, but the bench hasn’t provided a ton of scoring, and they’re still heavily reliant on LeBron to lead their offense.

The Celtics can be streaky in ways the Lakers can’t, and that should give them enough firepower to win and cover this line.

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How to Watch Celtics vs. Lakers on 1/23/25

• When: Thursday, January 23 @ 7:00/10:00 p.m. PT/ET

• Where: crypto.com Arena, Los Angeles, CA

• TV: TNT/truTV/Max

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