Is OKC’s upswing set to continue?
The Portland Trail Blazers get a visit from the bottom of the league in the West next night: the second-to-last Oklahoma City Thunder drop by. However, the guests have improved recently. They have recently beaten their upcoming opponents and Dallas.
Portland Trail Blazers – Statistics & current form
The Trail Blazers are in tenth place in the West after more than half of the regular season and therefore have to fear for the participation in the playoffs. Currently, the ranking would only be enough for the play-in tournament.
Damian Lillard, normally the best scorer in Head Coach Chauncey Billups’ squad, is still out with injury.
The Oregon hoopsters have also been very weak defensively this season, allowing 113.9 points per 100 possessions to their opponents – only the Sacramento Kings and Houston Rockets exceed that figure in the NBA.
Oklahoma City Thunder – Statistics & current form
The Oklahoma franchise is celebrating its 55th anniversary this year, but apart from winning the championship 43 years ago as the Seattle Supersonics and four conference triumphs, there is no other success to be found in OKC’s annals.
This season, that record will not change, because as the second-to-last team in the West, even reaching the play-in tournament will be difficult. The team is particularly disappointing in the forward play. As can be seen from the last place in the NBA’s offensive rating.
Portland Trail Blazers – Oklahoma City Thunder Tip
OKC currently presents itself stabilised. Before the two recent victories, the two previous losses against Indiana and Chicago were extremely close. Against the Pacers, the visitors only had to admit defeat in overtime and against the first in the table from the Windy City, they lost by a meagre point difference.
For the game between the Portland Trail Blazers and Oklahoma City Thunder, bets on an away win are therefore worth considering. The weak condition of the home side also speaks in favour of this. Without Damian Lillard, they lack a reliable shooter on the offensive end and with Zeller, they lack a reliable centre on the defensive end.
The tally of five defeats in the last six games underlines the verdict of a shaky home team. In addition, the guests already won a direct duel a few days ago with a clear 98:81 victory.
