Thunder-Warriors Betting Line – February 6
Carrie Stroup here with your Thunder-Warriors betting line for Saturday night Golden State -8.5, Total: 232
OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER (38-13) at GOLDEN STATE WARRIORS (45-4)
The Thunder will be looking to make a statement with a win over the Warriors at Oracle Arena on Saturday.
Oklahoma City has flown completely under the radar this season and would be the talk of the league if it weren’t for the Spurs and Warriors playing out of their minds. The Thunder most recently faced the Magic in Oklahoma City and won 117-114 as 11.5-point home favorites. They have now won five straight games and have scored over 100 points in nine straight contests.
The Warriors, meanwhile, have now won eight straight games after defeating the Wizards 134-121 as 9.5-point favorites in Washington on Wednesday. Golden State has also been playing well offensively; scoring 108 points or more in eight straight games.
These teams have not yet met this season and Oklahoma City is the team that won the last time these teams met. That game was on Jan. 16, 2015 and the Thunder won 127-115 as a one-point home underdog in that one. The Warriors have, however, won three straight games against the Thunder at Oracle Arena and they covered in the two most recent meetings.
It’s worth noting that Golden State is the second best team in the league ATS with a 29-18-2 record, which doesn’t bode well for an Oklahoma City team that is dead last in the NBA at 19-31-1 ATS.
The Thunder have really been playing well lately and the team deserves to be talked about a bit more. Oklahoma City can really earn some respect by defeating Golden State on Saturday.
One guy that will need to play well is PG Russell Westbrook (24.0 PPG, 10.0 APG, 7.6 RPG, 2.4 SPG). He has both the size and athleticism to really give Steph Curry trouble on both ends of the floor and he needs to show up on Saturday. He’s been playing extremely well over the past few weeks and is now averaging 24.2 PPG, 12.8 APG, 11.6 RPG and 1.4 SPG over the past five games.
SF Kevin Durant (27.4 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 4.5 APG, 1.2 BPG, 1.0 SPG) will also need to have a big game for the Thunder on Saturday and that should be no problem for him. Durant has been on a tear for Oklahoma City, averaging 33.8 PPG over the past five contests. The Warriors play good defense, but there will definitely be a lot of points scored in this game and Durant will surely find a way to score the basketball in this one. He will, however, need to play some solid defense as well.
PF Serge Ibaka (12.8 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 2.2 BPG) could be the x-factor for Oklahoma City in this one. Ibaka will see a lot of time matched up with Draymond Green and he needs to make plays on both ends of the floor in this game. If he can defend the rim and also chip in with some timely buckets then the Thunder just may pull off this upset.
The Warriors are on fire recently and PG Steph Curry (29.8 PPG, 6.4 APG, 5.3 RPG, 2.2 SPG) is coming off of one of his best games of the season. Curry poured in 51 points on 19-for-28 shooting from the floor and 11-for-16 shooting from three in a win over the Wizards on Wednesday. He will be amped up for this game, as he will be out to prove that he can perform at a high level even with the feisty Russell Westbrook guarding him.
SG Klay Thompson (21.5 PPG) could actually be the one that ends up guarding Westbrook for Golden State. Thompson is a better wing defender than Curry and has the size to give Westbrook some trouble. If he can come close to shutting him down then it would be huge for the Warriors. He will also need to continue to knock down threes for this team. He has been on fire as of late, shooting 50% from the outside over the past five games.
Another guy that will need to play very well on both ends of the floor is PF Draymond Green (14.5 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 7.4 APG, 1.4 BPG, 1.4 SPG). Green is going to spend a lot of time at the center spot in this game and he needs to do a good job of defending the rim. He’ll also be counted on to find his teammates offensively because there’s a good chance Curry will spend a lot of time off the ball.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
