The Oklahoma City Thunder continues their brief road trip on Saturday evening as they take on a New Orleans Pelicans squad that is nearing full strength. The Pelicans have dealt with a slew of injuries all season long, but with most of their rotation guys back in action on Thursday, they narrowly defeated the Phoenix Suns and appear to be moving in a more positive direction.
The Oklahoma City Thunder went into Game 3 against the Pelicans in New Orleans with one thing in mind: win. After a rocky start, they locked in on defense, shots started to fall, and they opened up a lead similar to the one in Game 2. In the end, New Orleans had no response, and OKC was able to pull out a 106-85 victory to take a 3-0 lead in the series. Now the Thunder have a golden opportunity to finish off the Pelicans for the round 1 sweep.
View More Oklahoma City Thunder | Round 1, Game 4 Preview: New Orleans Pelicans
Ever since the closeness of Game 1, the Thunder have really found their stride and managed to exploit the Pelicans in a lot of ways. The most obvious difference is 3-point shooting: OKC has hit shots, while New Orleans has not. If I had to guess, I would say that the Thunder will shoot slightly worse than the last couple of games while the Pelicans will see an uptick. Still, OKC has managed to force the Pelicans into a lot of tough shots and turnovers, and that’s not something that will just flip out of nowhere. The Thunder have a good shot at closing out the series, and I think they take advantage of that and head home with the sweep.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Favored, Look to Finish Out Pels in NOLA
Saturday afternoon sets the stage for Game 3 as the Pelicans enter as a slight underdog. Still missing Zion Williamson, New Orleans needs something special as they try to work towards evening up the series, but OKC seemed much more focused in Game 2, so that could be a difficult undertaking. The Thunder don’t want to give the Pelicans even an inkling of hope, so they need to start this one where they left off on Wednesday and take care of business early.
View More Oklahoma City Thunder | Round 1, Game 3: New Orleans Pelicans
Home court advantage goes a long way in the playoffs, but I’m not sure New Orleans has enough of it to push the Pelicans over the edge. Game 2 looked a lot closer to what people expected in this series as opposed to Game 1, but that’s not to say the Pelicans should be overlooked. The Thunder need to take quality shots like they did on Wednesday, and as long as they stay out of foul trouble and stay locked in on defense, I have a hard time giving New Orleans a win.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Just a Slight Favorite in NOLA
Despite being a heavy favorite, the Oklahoma City Thunder just barely gutted out a tough 94-92 win in Game 1 against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday. The energy was electric at the Paycom Center, and perhaps the nervousness of the playoffs affected the youth of the Thunder, but when it all came down to it, the right guys made the right plays, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scoring the go-ahead basket with 32.1 seconds to go. Now OKC needs to maintain home court advantage with another win in Game 2.
View More Oklahoma City Thunder | Round 1, Game 2: New Orleans Pelicans
Game 1 felt like the best chance for the Pelicans to steal a game in OKC. The Thunder shot well below their average, and while New Orleans did as well, it was far more surprising from OKC because of how open many of the looks were. Chalk it up to inexperience and initial playoff jitters because I fully expect the Thunder to bounce back with a more complete showing in Game 2. The Pelicans will also likely shoot a better percentage than they did in Game 1, but I’m still feeling good about a bounceback performance from OKC.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | Expect a Better Showing from OKC in Game 2
After a few short years of no postseason action, the Oklahoma City Thunder make their return to the NBA Playoffs in a major way as the top-seeded team in a stacked Western Conference. At 57-25, the Thunder had their best season since 2014, and expectations are as high as they have been in a long time. The Thunder are heavy favorites in the opening round as they prepare to take on the New Orleans Pelicans.
View More Oklahoma City Thunder | Round 1, Game 1: New Orleans Pelicans
The Pelicans are without Zion Williamson for the foreseeable future, and without him, there’s not really a guy on the team that can just go get a bucket at any time. CJ McCollum can pop off in bursts, particularly because of his three-point shooting ability, but he hasn’t played well lately, and OKC is so well-rounded defensively that it’s going to take a lot from New Orleans to make this a game and really even a series. OKC is a heavy favorite not just in Game 1 but in the series as a whole, and I think the Thunder make a statement tonight with a double-digit victory.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Favored Heavy in Game 1 with NOLA Missing Zion
The regular season is all wrapped up, and the Oklahoma City Thunder far surpassed preseason expectations as they managed to win 40 games and sneak their way into the Play-In Tournament. OKC is as healthy as they can be at this point in the season as they travel to New Orleans to take on the Pelicans in the 9/10 game.
View More OKC Thunder | Play-In Game #1 Preview: New Orleans Pelicans