The Oklahoma City Thunder locked up the 1-seed in the Western Conference with a 128-110 over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night. With the best record in the league, OKC will have homecourt advantage throughout the playoffs. The regular season isn’t quite over, though, as they wrap up a 3-game road trip with the regular season road finale in Denver against the Nuggets on Friday night.
OKC enters this one with just a handful of available players, but fans shouldn’t worry. With the 1-seed locked up, most of the Thunder’s key players are sitting out for rest. As a result, OKC is a double-digit underdog, and while Denver should be able to win this one easily, I wouldn’t count the Thunder out from at least making it a game. As a result, I’m taking OKC to cover the spread, even if it’s just barely.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | Shorthanded OKC Takes on Nuggets in Denver as Heavy Underdog
It’s been just a little over a week since Luguentz Dort tripped Nikola Jokic, and all hell nearly broke loose as the Oklahoma City Thunder held on to defeat the Denver Nuggets 127-101 in overtime. These two teams are extremely familiar with one another at this point, and the bad blood that exists is enough to fuel any basketball fan’s desire for fireworks. On Monday night, they do battle once again in Oklahoma City.
View More Oklahoma City Thunder | Game #66 Preview: Denver Nuggets
OKC is still nearly as healthy as we would like them to be, and that obviously makes this game a lot more interesting. Chet Holmgren is questionable with the flu, but I’m guessing he will play. As for Denver, they have pretty much everybody available, and even though Jamal Murray is questionable with a sprained ankle, I also think he’ll end up playing. When these two teams met a little over a week ago, the Thunder narrowly won in overtime, and I expect a similarly close game tonight. These two teams are very familiar with each other at this point, and Ajay Mitchell is back, which gives OKC another playmaker on the floor when Shai Gilgeous-Alexander subs out. I’ve got the Thunder winning at home, but expect another clutch-time finish.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | Thunder Favored Against Nuggets At Home as Ajay Mitchell Returns
The Oklahoma City Thunder returns home on Friday night after a quick back-to-back up North, and they will be hosting Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. After a handful of players sat out on Wednesday against the Detroit Pistons, OKC continues to get near full strength as many return, including Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has missed the last 9 games with an abdominal strain.
View More Oklahoma City Thunder | Game #61 Preview: Denver Nuggets
The return of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is pretty big for the Thunder right now, considering their lead in the Western Conference standings is just 1.5 games ahead of the San Antonio Spurs. After being an underdog for three consecutive games, this point spread feels like a massive swing considering the opponent, but that goes to show just how highly Vegas thinks of a near-healthy Thunder squad. I like OKC to cover because SGA is the only guy (that isn’t still out) that has missed more than a game or two, and he’s not one to ever really struggle with rust. Add to it that Denver has its share of bumps and bruises, and the Thunder should get a nice, convincing win.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Hosts Nuggets as Heavy Favorite with SGA’s Return
The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Denver Nuggets meet on Sunday night for the first time since OKC defeated Denver in 7 games last season’s Western Conference Semifinals. Isaiah Hartenstein should be back in the starting lineup for the Thunder, and Nikola Jokic made his return to the Nuggets a couple of days ago, just in time for the top two teams in the West to do battle.
View More Oklahoma City Thunder | Game #50 Preview: Denver Nuggets
I managed to lock in the line at OKC -4.5, which I was much more comfortable with than the current -7.5. OKC is still missing some key pieces, but the Nuggets are also lacking in several areas. Nikola Jokic obviously does a lot for Denver, regardless of who is on the floor, but they don’t have a guy who can guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Isaiah Hartenstein should be back in the starting line-up, and Chet Holmgren will benefit from that. OKC does need to slow down Denver’s three-point shooting, but if the Thunder can do that, they could open this one up big.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Given Edge over Nuggets Ahead of Matchup in Denver
Historically speaking, the home team has won 79.1% (112-39) of Game 7s, but 10 of the last 15 have gone to the road team. OKC’s crowd is an advantage, but the players still must play the game. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander needs to prove why he’s the MVP, Jalen Williams needs to rebound from his abysmal Game 6 performance with a memorable one, and the league’s most tenacious defense needs to prove how they led the way to a league-best 68 wins.
View More Oklahoma City Thunder | Western Conference Semifinals Game 7: Denver Nuggets
Oklahoma City hosts Denver in the Thunder’s first Game 7 at home since defeating the Memphis Grizzlies in the first round of the 2014 Playoffs. Loud City has lived up to its name, and you can be sure the crowd is going to bring the energy. The Thunder has to take care of business to advance, and it will be nothing short of a major disappointment if they lose. I think the crowd gives OKC an early edge, and if the Nuggets are missing Aaron Gordon, they’re going to have to go deeper in their bench than perhaps they’d like to. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander has something to prove, Jalen Williams should have a bounce-back game, and I think a convincing win is in order for the Thunder.
View More Thunder Against the Spread | OKC Favored At Home in Game 7 Matchup with Nuggets