Rockets vs. Lakers NBA Player Prop Picks, Predictions & Odds Tonight: March 31

The Los Angeles Lakers (45-29) look to make one final push for the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference when they host the Houston Rockets (49-26). Tipoff in tonight's premier NBA matchup is set for 10 p.m. ET (TNT) from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
Our Rockets vs. Lakers NBA player prop picks and predictions make a score prediction and highlight key contributors who could impact the result. Our best sports betting sites list the hosts as 4.5-point betting favorites with a total of 225.5 points.
Will Luka Doncic, LeBron James, and Co. pick up a much-needed victory amid this poor run of form?
💰 Best Rockets vs. Lakers predictions & NBA player props tonight: March 31
Here are my best Rockets vs. Lakers predictions and player props for tonight's NBA matchup with my pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale. Be sure to check out the rest of our NBA picks along with our guide on how to bet on the NBA.
✅ Game pick: Rockets to cover +5.5 (-120 via ESPN BET) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
✅ Alperen Sengun player prop pick: Over 9.5 rebounds (-115 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✅ Luka Doncic player prop pick: Over 29.5 points (-106 via FanDuel) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
✅ Jalen Green player prop pick: Over 3.5 assists (+114 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐
⛹️ Rockets vs. Lakers player prop picks
Here are my best Rockets vs. Lakers player prop bet odds and expert picks for tonight's NBA matchup. You can also check out our NBA player prop odds tool for the latest NBA odds at the best legal sportsbooks in your region.
🏀 Alperen Sengun Over 9.5 rebounds (-115) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Best odds: -115 via DraftKings ($10 to win $8.70)
Houston comes into this game as the NBA's leader in rebounds per game (48.7). Sengun is a big reason for this success, with Ime Udoka's leading rebounder sitting top-10 leaguewide with 10.5 boards per game.
The 6-foot-11 center is a monster on the glass, an area Los Angeles struggles. The Lakers used to combat Sengun with Anthony Davis, but they have no dominating presence in the paint now after sending the big man to the Dallas Mavericks. As such, they're the NBA's fifth-worst rebounding team (42.5).
Sengun has hauled in 10-plus rebounds at a 70% clip over his last 10 appearances. Factor in Los Angeles' lack of aggressiveness on the glass and the Turk's season averages, and he should have no issue clearing this line tonight.
📊 Best Alperen Sengun prop bet odds
🏀 Luka Doncic Over 29.5 points (-106) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Best odds: -106 via FanDuel ($10 to win $9.43)
We briefly touched on the negative side of the blockbuster trade the Lakers and Mavericks made when discussing Sengun's player prop, now it's time for the positive.
Doncic has been scoring at an elite clip recently, averaging 30.6 points over his last 10 outings. This hot streak includes six 30-plus-point performances, and he's shown no signs of slowing down. This is especially true considering he now faces one of his favorite opponents.
Doncic has averaged 38.6 points over his last five outings against Houston. He failed to go Under this total only once, when he scored 29 on Halloween night. Given his run of form, history against this opponent, and favorable odds at our best sports betting apps, we like Doncic to put on a scoring showcase.
📊 Best Luka Doncic prop bet odds
🏀 Jalen Green Over 3.5 assists (+114) ⭐⭐⭐
Best odds: +114 via DraftKings ($10 to win $11.40)
Green has enjoyed one of the most under-the-radar seasons in the Association this year. He is Houston's leading scorer (21.6 PPG) and he's the team's only player to appear in every game. The attention his scoring has garnered has led to value popping up in other prop markets, notably Green's assist market.
The shooting guard would have to overperform his season average of 3.4 assists per game to cash this prop, but we believe the juice is worth the squeeze. Green has tallied four-plus assists in six of his last 10 games, averaging 4.5 per game over that span. He's also cleared 3.5 assists at a 50% clip during his career against the Lakers.
The Rockets have a clear advantage in the paint, so it wouldn't be a surprise to see Green take on the role of distributor in this contest, even if it is just a slight uptick in production. Our best sportsbooks list the fourth-year guard at plus money to go Over in tonight's outing - it's worth a flier at three-star confidence.
📊 Best Jalen Green prop bet odds
🎯 Expert Rockets vs. Lakers score prediction & AI projections
🔮 Expert score prediction: Rockets 114, Lakers 109
🤖 AI score prediction: Lakers 118, Rockets 112
🔮 Expert score prediction: Rockets 114, Lakers 109
It's the second night of a back-to-back for Houston, which is a mediocre 7-9 in such games this season. Most of those losses came without difference-maker Tari Eason. However, Udoka took a different approach to this back-to-back, giving Eason a rest on the first night.
As such, I believe this is a case of WTF (wrong team favored).
While the trio of Austin Reaves, Doncic, and James has audiences enamored, Los Angeles has struggled lately. The Lakers have dropped four of their last six, compared to the Rockets, who have won 12 of 13. We like Houston to cover the spread and win outright as a road underdog.
📊 Best odds: +18000 via DraftKings (bet $10 to win $1,800)
🤖 AI score prediction: Lakers 118, Rockets 112
(Score prediction and analysis via ChatGPT - a large language model from OpenAI. While ChatGPT is not specifically designed for predicting sporting events, it can spot trends or insights that bettors might overlook.)
🖥️ AI predictions for Lakers vs. Rockets
ChatGPT is fading our prediction and picking the hosts with the projected final score of Lakers 118, Rockets 112.
- Win probability: Rockets 30% | Lakers 70%
- Projected total points: 130
- Key takeaways:
- The Rockets dominate in the paint and on the boards, ranking at the top for both categories. Their rising young talent, including players like Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun, has contributed to their increased consistency and improvement this season.
- The Lakers boast star power with LeBron James and Luka Doncic. Additionally, their offense has been potent recently, highlighted by their victory against the Memphis Grizzlies, where key players like Austin Reaves stepped up. Their offensive depth is strong.
- The Lakers' star power, especially the combination of James and Doncic, gives them an edge in a close game. The Rockets’ inconsistent offense could make it tough to keep up in a high-scoring contest.
🤔 Betting takeaway: ChatGPT's AI score prediction leans toward the Lakers covering the spread (-4.5) and a total of Over 225.5 points.
📊 Live Rockets vs. Lakers odds & NBA betting splits tonight
Here are the latest Rockets vs. Lakers odds and betting splits from our best live betting sites.
🔢 Rockets vs. Lakers latest odds & betting lines
🏆 Who will win Rockets vs. Lakers?
As of 9:15 a.m. ET, Los Angeles is favored by 4.5 points to beat Houston with moneyline odds of -190 at BetMGM, which suggest a 65.52% win probability for the Lakers. We're predicting a 114-109 win for the Rockets as our final score projection.
So far, 51% of bettors have wagered against the spread on Los Angeles -4.5, while 91% of bettors expect the game to finish Over the projected total of 124.5 points.
🚑 Rockets vs. Lakers injuries
Here are the latest injuries for tonight's Rockets vs. Lakers matchup, which will update in real time.
📺 How to watch Rockets vs. Lakers tonight
📅 Date: Monday, March 31
🕗 Time: 10 p.m. ET
📍 Location: Crypto.com Arena (Los Angeles)
📺 TV: TNT
💻 Streaming: Max, SlingTV
❓ Rockets vs. Lakers FAQs
Who is favored to win Rockets vs. Lakers?
The Lakers are favored to beat the Rockets with -190 moneyline odds at our best live betting sites, which imply a 65.52% probability the hosts will win.
What are the odds for Rockets vs. Lakers?
BetMGM lists the Lakers as 4.5-point betting favorites (-118) over the Rockets, with a total of 224.5 (-110).
What time is Rockets vs. Lakers tonight?
The Rockets vs. Lakers game tips off from Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles at 10 p.m. ET.
How to watch Rockets vs. Lakers
You can watch Rockets vs. Lakers on TNT or stream it on Max.
🏀 Best NBA betting sites
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