Thunder vs. Nuggets Pick
Are the Oklahoma City Thunder going to secure a win as a small road favorite tonight at the Denver Nuggets? Game time is 10:30PM ET.
Who Oddsmakers Like: Oklahoma City. According to oddsmakers at YouWager, the Thunder are listed as a 1.5-point favorite on the spread line. The total sits at 218 points. The spread has remained steady at -1.5 since it opened, while the total has jumped from 213.5.
Who the Public Likes: As of Thursday afternoon, 73 percent of public bets have come in on the visiting Thunder.
Injury Report: Thunder guard Andre Roberson is out for the season with a ruptured patellar tendon. For the Nuggets, Nikola Jokic is dealing with an ankle injury but is expected to play tonight. Gary Harris injured his ankle last game and is questionable tonight. Wilson Chandler missed the last game with a migraine and is questionable. Mason Plumlee missed the last game with a calf injury and is not expected to play tonight. Paul Millsap is out until late February as he recovers from surgery to repair a torn ligament in his wrist.
Who the Trends Like: Denver is 1-5-1 ATS in its last seven games when its opponent allows 100 or more points in its previous game. The under is 4-0 in the last four meetings overall, but the over is 5-2 in the last seven meetings in Denver.
Who We Like: This should be a very entertaining game for a national television audience on TNT. These two teams have been playing lower-scoring games than expected against each other in recent meetings, so I wouldn’t be surprised if this one turns into a shootout. Denver has lost two in a row, but two quality teams at home versus the Celtics (111-110) and at the Spurs (106-104). Losing a pair of games that close probably means the Nuggets are due for a win. They also have a revenge factor in play here as the Thunder edged Denver 95-94 in the last meeting in OKC on Dec. 18. The Nuggets won the first meeting this season in their home arena by a count of 102-94 on Nov. 9. Oklahoma City lost its last contest 102-96 at Washington and Russell Westbrook has not shot the ball well the last two games. I’m siding with the home team here.
NBA DAILY PREDICTION: DENVER NUGGETS +1.5