Thunder Against the Spread | Expect Another Big Win as OKC Takes on Pelicans in NOLA

Tip-Off: 6 PM CT

Location: Smoothie King Center (New Orleans, Louisiana)

Spread: Thunder (-8)

Total: 225.5

Trends Against The Spread

ThunderatPelicans
13-9 (59%)All8-15 (34%)
7-4 (63%) on the roadLocation6-5 (54%) at home
12-9 (57%) as favoriteStatus7-10 (41%) as underdog or pick
6-4 (60%) as road favoriteLocation Status5-3 (62%) as home underdog
1-0 (100%)Head To Head0-1 (0%)
  • Oklahoma City is 10-12 (45%) against the over on the season.
  • New Orleans is 11-12 (47%) against the over on the season.
  • The Thunder is 4-7 (36%) against the over on the road.
  • The Pelicans are 6-5 (54%) against the over at home.

Team Stats (Last Season’s Stats)

TEAMPTSPAFG%3P%REBASTTOVSTLBLKSTRKL10
OKC115.5103.546.334.643.325.811.312.06.6W27-3
NOP104.3116.443.632.843.423.715.29.25.3W11-9

Injury Report

Thunder

  • Ousmane Dieng (small fracture in right ring finger) is OUT.
  • Alex Ducas (G League — two-way) is OUT.
  • Chet Holmgren (fractured right iliac wing) is OUT.
  • Dillon Jones (G League — on assignment) is OUT.
  • Nikola Topic (left ACL surgery recovery) is OUT.
  • Jaylin Williams (strained right hamstring) is OUT.

Pelicans

  • Jose Alvarado (strained left hamstring) is OUT.
  • Jordan Hawkins (annular fissure in lumbar spine) is OUT.
  • Karlo Matkovic (lower back soreness) is QUESTIONABLE.
  • Antonio Reeves (G League — on assignment) is OUT.
  • Daniel Theis (neck spasm) is QUESTIONABLE.
  • Zion Williamson (strained left hamstring) is OUT.

Series History

The Thunder is 1-0 against the Pelicans so far this season (1-0 at home, 0-0 on the road).

Why the Thunder Will Cover (-8)

The Pelicans picked up their first win in 10 tries on Thursday when they defeated a short-handed Phoenix Suns squad 126-124. New Orleans has dealt with brutal injuries all season long, but they did have 5 of their top 6 players against Phoenix, so they’re getting closer to full strength. I would expect the New Orleans to play a competitive game as a result, but OKC has been on fire the last couple of games, blowing out opponents with poor records. I think they continue the trend and beat the Pelicans by double digits.

Why the Game Will NOT Hit the Over (222.5)

New Orleans has lowest-scoring offense in the league, and regardless of who is back, I don’t think they’re all of a sudden going to figure out how to put up a ton of points against the league’s top defense. I do think OKC could turn this into a big enough blowout to force the over on the point total, but I’m still thinking we’ll have more defense than anything, so I’m taking the under.

Staff Picks

On the Season

NameMoneylineSpreadOver/Under
Matt14-611-913-7
Zack17-514-814-8
Craig16-516-4-113-8

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