Thunder vs. Nuggets Prediction
Can the Denver Nuggets stay strong at home and hold off the surging Oklahoma City Thunder when the two meet tonight at 10PM ET?
583 Oklahoma City Thunder at 584 Denver Nuggets
Friday, December 14, 2018
10PM ET – Pepsi Center
Compare odds and from multiple different online sportsbooks and shop for the best lines at our new NBA Odds & Betting Page.
Public Betting Trends
According to oddsmakers at BetNow.eu, the Thunder are the slight favorite on the road, as they are getting odds of -1.5 points against the Nuggets. The over/under total for the contest is listed at 218.5 points. The public betting currently has 55 percent going on the Nuggets as a home underdog. This information is subject to change, however, so be sure to check out our NBA Public Betting Page for updated figures on the game.
Thunder playing well
Despite losing two of their last three, Oklahoma City has still been one of the hotter teams in the league as of late, winning seven of their last 10 games. OKC is now 17-9 on the season, 7-6 on the road, 15-11 against the spread and 14-12 with the under.
The Thunder are strong on defense, allowing just 105.2 points per game on defense this year while holding opponents to 44.7 percent shooting from the field and 32.4 percent from the arc. Offensively, OKC averages 111.7 points per game despite shooting only 31.8 percent from the arc. Paul George is averaging 24.3 points and 7.9 rebounds per game for the Thunder while Russell Westbrook is adding 22.0 points, 10.3 rebounds and 10.0 assists per contest.
Nuggets looking for run at home
The Nuggets ended a five-game road trip this week by picking up a 105-99 win at home over the Grizzlies. They have won eight of their last 10 games. Denver is 18-9 on the season, 10-3 at home, 16-11 against the spread and 16-10-1 with the under.
Like the Thunder, Denver has a pretty good defense. The Nuggets are giving up just 103.7 points per game while holding opponents to 44.8 percent shooting and 32.1 percent shooting from 3-point land. On offense, the Nuggets are averaging 110.0 points per game while shooting 46.2 percent. Denver has been racking up some injuries, as Gary Harris, Will Barton, Michael Porter Jr., Isaiah Thomas and Paul Millsap are all out indefinitely. Jamal Murray is leading the team with 17.4 points and 4.9 assists per game while Nikola Jokic is adding 17.1 points, 9.8 rebounds and 7.6 assists per contest.
NBA Betting Trends
Oklahoma City
The Thunder are just 7-16-1 against the spread in their last 24 Friday games and 1-4 ATS in their last five when playing on 1 day of rest.
Denver
The Nuggets have covered the spread in four straight at home and in eight of their last 10 overall.
Prediction:
It’s hard to pick against a home underdog that has the record that Denver does, but the injuries just seem too great. The Nuggets will have a thin bench for a physical and fast-paced game against the Thunder. OKC still has all of its pieces available and I think that will be the difference come the second half. The Thunder have more scoring options and a deeper bench to work with.
NBA Prediction: Oklahoma City Thunder -1.5