NBA Predictions: Will Thunder cruise to win over Trail Blazers? 1/9/18

Trail Blazers vs. Thunder Pick

Are the host Oklahoma City Thunder going to handle a test from the Portland Trail Blazers tonight at 8PM ET?

Who Oddsmakers Like: According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Thunder are a 7.5-point favorite on the spread line. The total is set at 206 points. Oklahoma City opened as an 8.5-point fave, while the total has gone up after opening at 205.

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Who the Public Likes: As of Tuesday afternoon, 56 percent of public bets have rolled in on the visiting Trail Blazers.

Injury Report: Portland point guard Damian Lillard has been ruled out a second straight contest with a strained calf. CJ Wilcox is recovering from knee surgery and is targeting a mid-January return. For the Thunder, Andre Roberson is dealing with patellar tendinitis in his knee and out until mid-January.

Who the Trends Like: Portland is 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings, but only 1-4 ATS in the last five meetings in Oklahoma City. The under is 23-8-2 in the last 33 meetings in Oklahoma City.

Who We Like: With Lillard out, bettors might be tilting toward the Thunder but I'm in a different boat. I expect CJ McCollum to step into the primary scorer role as he usually does with Lillard out, while Shabazz Napier has done a solid job filling in at point guard. The Trail Blazers have won two in a row, including a 111-110 victory at home over the Spurs without Lillard. Meanwhile, OKC is coming off an ugly 114-100 loss at Phoenix. Do you really want to trust that team to cover this spread?

 

NBA DAILY PREDICTION: PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS +7.5