The Los Angeles Lakers welcome the Denver Nuggets to Crypto.com Arena for Game 3 of the 2023 NBA Western Conference finals at 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. The Nuggets lead the series by a 2-0 margin. Los Angeles is favored by 5.5 points at Caesars Sportsbook, while the over/under is set at 22e (see up-to-date odds for every game this week on our NBA odds page). 

Before making any Nuggets vs. Lakers picks, you NEED to check out the NBA predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.

The SportsLine Projection Model simulates every NBA game 10,000 times and has returned well over $10,000 in profit for $100 players on its top-rated NBA picks over the past four-plus seasons. The model entered the conference finals of the 2023 NBA playoffs a stunning 72-38 on all top-rated NBA picks this season, returning nearly $2,900. Anyone following it has seen HUGE returns!

The model knows the Nuggets are capable of exploding on offense at any moment. Denver has the best offensive rating (118.9) of any team in the playoffs, including 1.2 points per possession against Los Angeles in the series. The Nuggets are shooting 41.4% from 3-point range against Los Angeles in the series, and Denver is shooting 49% from the field and 38.5% from 3-point range in the postseason. 

The model also knows the Lakers lean on an elite defense. Los Angeles is giving up only 1.08 points per possession in the playoffs, including only 1.06 points per possession to Denver in Game 2. The Lakers are even better on defense at home, giving up fewer than a point per possession, and opponents are shooting only 43.2% from the field against Los Angeles in the postseason.

Now, it has set its sights on Nuggets vs. Lakers. We can tell you the model is leaning Over the total, and it also says one side of the spread hits in almost 60% of simulations! You ABSOLUTELY need to see it before locking in any NBA picks.

Who wins Nuggets vs. Lakers? And which side of the spread hits in almost 60% of simulations? ... Join SportsLine right now to find out which side of the Nuggets vs. Lakers spread you should be all over Saturday, all from the model that's 72-38 on top-rated NBA picks!