The Oklahoma City Thunder’s historic start to the regular season could be in jeopardy on Sunday night as they take on the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City without a handful of key players. Isaiah Hartenstein, Luguentz Dort, Alex Caruso, and Isaiah Joe have all missed extended time recently, but now reigning MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is set to miss his first game of the season with elbow bursitis.
This is as low a spread as OKC has had in quite some time, and it’s not because of a tough opponent. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is set to miss his first game of the season with elbow bursitis, and the Thunder is also without Luguentz Dort, Isaiah Hartenstein, Alex Caruso, and Isaiah Joe. That’s a pretty lengthy list of key players. Still, OKC is as deep as they come, and this will allow Jalen Williams to run the show in a sense. Even with all the absences, I still think OKC wins by double digits.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | Shorthanded OKC Enters Meeting With Jazz as Solid Road Favorite
Tonight’s matchup with the Jazz isn’t of much concern as OKC is once again heavily favored. Utah has won just 3 of their last 11 games on their way to a 4-9 record overall. The Jazz have fared dramatically better at home than on the road, but the Thunder is no ordinary team coming into the Delta Center.
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OKC has struggled to cover these giant spreads lately. Not every game can be a blowout, and when your starters aren’t even seeing the floor in the fourth quarter, it’s even less likely to happen. Still, I think the Thunder can blow out the Jazz tonight. Utah’s defense is towards the bottom of the league, plus they turn the ball over at a high rate. That’s a recipe for success for OKC, and if the Thunder can shoot even remotely close to their season average from 3-point land, then winning by 20+ is definitely possible.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Enters Salt Lake City as Heavy Favorite Over Jazz
After a brutal January schedule, the Thunder gets a bit of relief as they play 4 games in the next 8 days before getting some recovery time at the All-Star Break. OKC has been relatively healthy all season long, but they put a lengthy injury report ahead of Tuesday’s matchup with the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City.
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Oklahoma City has the lengthiest injury report that they have had all season. Most of the injuries appear to be minor and is likely due to the fact that the trade deadline is Thursday at 2 PM CT, meaning Thunder GM Sam Presti could be getting ready to make a move or two. While I’m not convinced that’s the case, it definitely is impacting who is available tonight. Fortunately for OKC, most of the guys that will likely miss are rotation players, so the Thunder can make do with what they have. Jalen Williams might even make his return from a sprained right ankle. So, even with Utah at relatively full strength, I have faith in the Thunder core to take care of business on the road and cover the small spread.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | Short-Handed OKC a Slight Favorite Against Jazz On the Road
All signs point to OKC stumbling in this one. The Jazz are riding a 6-game winning streak, and their only loss in the last 10 games was to the Celtics in Boston. Meanwhile, the Thunder has lost two straight on the road, albeit to the Lakers and the Clippers. Regardless of trends, I’m taking the Thunder to cover, primarily because when they have yet to streak in a downward manner for very long. OKC has yet to lose three consecutive games this season, and I don’t think that happens tonight, even if the Jazz ARE playing really good basketball.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Favored in Salt Lake City Against Streaking Jazz
OKC has been favored by this much just a handful of times so far this season, but tonight’s line just makes sense. The Thunder just destroyed the Jazz on Friday, and that was without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. SGA is back tonight, plus the Jazz are without Lauri Markannen. Jordan Clarkson didn’t play on Friday, and he’s back tonight, but without Markannen, Clarkson will likely get extra attention from Luguentz Dort. I like Shai to have a good comeback night, and as a result, I see another double-digit win taking place for OKC.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Heavy Favorite at Home Against Jazz
Just two nights ago, the Oklahoma City Thunder put an end to to their losing streak with a convincing 130-103 victory at home over the Utah Jazz. Aaron Wiggins led OKC with a career-high 27 points as 5 other Thunder players finished in double digits, and Luguentz Dort held Lauri Markannen to just 20 points 6-of-14 shooting. Overall, it was a solid win at a crucial time against a good team.
View More OKC Thunder | Game #64 Preview: Utah Jazz
NBA All-Star Weekend is long gone as the Oklahoma City Thunder is ready to begin the final stretch of the season with back-to-back road trip starting on Thursday night in Salt Lake City against the Utah Jazz. After a surprisingly hot start to the season, the Jazz have settled a bit into a 29-31 record. The Thunder has experienced a different route to a similar record, starting off the season slowly before picking up the pace to get to 28-29 on the season.
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