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The Oklahoma City Thunder and Cleveland Cavaliers both entered the season expected to be on the short list of title contenders. More than halfway through the season, neither is looking very hot. Both of these struggling teams are looking to find their groove down the stretch. They will face off with one another in a pivotal regular season matchup this weekend.
Cleveland has struggled of late but is still the more talented team with the home court advantage, so it should enter as the favorite. The Thunder has star power and has played well in the past week. Oklahoma City would love to turn the corner and become a viable threat in the West, and a win in this one would definitely turn some heads.
This game features a boatload of stars and should be entertaining as both teams frantically hope to iron out their issues before the postseason.
This war on the floor will go down Saturday, January 20, 2018, at 3:30 p.m. ET at Quicken Loans Arena. The game will be televised live on ABC.
We'll have NBA odds at BookMaker.eu available for this and every game on the NBA Saturday schedule.
Odds Analysis
Oklahoma City is 25-20 straight up and 18-27 against the spread. The Thunder has only covered in eight of 22 attempts on the road this year. Oklahoma City has covered three of four times as the underdog on the season.
The Cavaliers are 27-17 straight up and an ugly 12-31-1 against the spread. Cleveland has gone only 3-17-1 against the spread at home this year and it badly wants to buck that trend. The Cavaliers have gone just 6-28-1 as the favorite. Cleveland has fallen way short of projections and hopes to start clicking soon.
Matchup To Watch
Russell Westbrook vs. Isaiah Thomas —Each side has a star point guard. Westbrook isn’t putting up as gaudy of numbers as a season ago as he has a better supporting cast this season, but is still playing very well. Westbrook is averaging 24.8 points, 9.9 assists and 9.7 rebounds per game and is one of the most dynamic players in the NBA.
Thomas missed the first part of the season with a hip injury but has since returned to the floor. The Cavs haven’t taken advantage of his presence yet but he seems like an integral part if the group can turn it on in the playoffs.
Thomas is averaging 13.6 points and 3.4 assists per game as he still tries to figure out his role with this team.
Key Stat
1. That was the margin of victory for the Cavaliers last time out, but at least they finally got a victory. Cleveland had lost four in a row and eight of its last 10 until hanging on to beat the Magic.
The Cavs blew a 23-point lead in this game but Thomas hit a pair of free throws in the final seconds to secure the win. Cleveland boasts Thomas, LeBron James, Kevin Love, Tristan Thompson and others yet has not been able to put it all together this season.
It will be interesting to see if they make a big move at the trading deadline in order to beef up the team.
Free NBA ATS Picks
The Cavaliers have underachieved all season but should be able to pick up this win. The Thunder is better than its record and would probably win this game at home but it’s always tough going on the road.
Take a close look at the spread. If the Thunder is too big of an underdog in this game, it will be the correct choice to cover the spread. This game should go down to the final minute before Cleveland pulls it out.
NBA Odds: Cavaliers 103, Thunder 101
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