NBA Basketball Betting – OKC Thunder visits King Cavs
The Oklahoma City Thunder (1-14 SU, 7-8 ATS) is finding different ways to lose all the time. On Wednesday night this team will encounter a daunting task, as it visits the Cleveland Cavaliers (11-3 SU, 10-4 ATS) in NBA pro basketball sports betting action that is set to tip off at 7 PM ET at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, O.
BetUS NBA Basketball Betting Odds: CLEVELAND -15.5, Total 195.5
Here are some of the NBA pro basketball sports betting trends as they relate to this matchup:
* OKC has lost its last 12 games SU
* OKC has covered two of its last eight games
* OKC has played seven of its last nine games OVER the total
* OKC has covered five of its last seven road games
* OKC has played its last five road games OVER the total
* CLEV has won 10 of its last 11 games SU
* CLEV has covered eight of its last ten home games
* CLEV has won its last ten home games SU
* CLEV has played its last six home games OVER the total
Also…
* OKC has won 19 of the last 25 meetings SU
* Five of the last seven meetings have gone UNDER the total
* CLEV has won and covered four of the last five meetings as the home team
* OKC has won nine of the last 13 meetings SU as the road team
* Four of the last five meetings in Cleveland have gone UNDER the total
* OKC has had the shooting edge in seven of the last nine meetings
Both of these clubs played last night. The Cavs hung a 119-101 defeat on the Knicks at Madison Square Garden, and didn’t at all seem distracted by all the talk going around about whether LeBron James was going to be available to them two years from now. In that game, James had 26 points, with Wally Szczerbiak adding 16 points coming off the bench.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma City, playing its second game for new coach Scott Brooks, showed a lot of enthusiasm, although the team blew a 16-point lead and lost by a point against Phoenix. Kevin Durant scored 29 points in the losing effort, with “effort” the key word. The Thunder shot 53% three nights before against New Orleans, but came up short In Brooks’ first game they had a season-low 12 turnovers. In his second game they had a season-high 28 assists. So there is progress.
At least Oklahoma City is getting some bench play out of Russell Westbrook and Chris Wilcox, who could very easily be starting. But the problem is defense; in the last three games, New Orleans shot 49% and 54% and Phoenix shot 53%. We obviously see them having problems keeping Cleveland off the board. The Cavs are on a streak where they have won 10 of 11, and have covered eight of ten at the Quicken Loans Arena. They average 105.4 ppg at home. And they are getting scoring support for King James, who is sticking around – for the time being.
Still, Durant is the type who will create matchup problems for anyone guarding him. And if the first two games are any indication, the Thunder will keep playing hard for Brooks until the end. We’ll grab an inflated number with Oklahoma City, the 15.5-point underdog in the BetUS Sportsbook NBA pro basketball betting odds.
