For the first time all season, the Oklahoma City Thunder are set as home underdogs when they take on the Cleveland Cavaliers on Sunday afternoon.
Cleveland is set as a 3.5-point road favorite in this matchup as it aims to win an eighth game in a row to jump into the No. 3 seed in the Eastern Conference. The Cavs and New York Knicks are both 36-21 and tied in the Eastern Conference standings.
Several key players are out of the Thunder on Sunday, including reigning league MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is expected to miss a few more games with an abdominal strain. Jalen Williams, Ajay Mitchell and Alex Caruso have also been ruled out for OKC in this matchup.
The Thunder did knock off the lowly Brooklyn Nets on Friday without SGA, moving them to 5-3 when the star guard sits this season.
However, this is a major step up in class against a Cavs team that is rolling since trading for James Harden at the deadline.
Let’s take a look at the latest odds, my favorite player prop and a prediction for Sunday’s matchup.
Cavaliers vs. Thunder Odds, Spread and Total
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook
Spread
- Cavs -3.5 (-110)
- Thunder +3.5 (-110)
Moneyline
Total
- 226.5 (Over -110/Under -110)
Cavaliers vs. Thunder How to Watch
- Date: Sunday, Feb. 22
- Time: 1:00 p.m. EST
- Venue: Paycom Center
- How to Watch (TV): ABC
- Cavs record: 36-21
- Thunder record: 43-14
Cavaliers vs. Thunder Injury Reports
Cavs Injury Report
- Max Strus – out
- Tristan Enaruna – out
- Riley Minix – out
Thunder Injury Report
- Shai Gilgeous-Alexander – out
- Jalen Williams – out
- Ajay Mitchell – out
- Thomas Sorber – out
- Alex Caruso – out
Cavaliers vs. Thunder Best NBA Prop Bets
Thunder Best NBA Prop Bet
- Jared McCain OVER 11.5 Points (-123)
Oklahoma City acquired former first-round pick Jared McCain at the trade deadline this season, and he’s immediately been thrust into a major role with SGA, Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell all banged up.
All three players will miss Sunday’s game, putting McCain in a good spot to play major minutes off the bench. He’s played over 20 minutes in three straight games, scoring at least 12 points in all of them.
I expect a similar showing from the young guard in his matchup, especially since McCain is coming off his best performance with OKC, scoring 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting in the win over the Nets. The usage for McCain may not be super high — he only has one game with 10 or more shot attempts with OKC — but the Thunder need shot creation and playmaking with so many key pieces out on Sunday.
Since McCain was traded, he has played well, averaging 11.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game while shooting 48.8 percent from the field and 45.0 percent from 3.
Cavaliers vs. Thunder Prediction and Pick
The Thunder enter this game at 23-6 at home, but they haven’t exactly been elite against the spread, going 14-15 in those games.
Now, they’re down their two top scorers in SGA and Williams, as well as their best bench player in Mitchell.
That’s a lot to overcome against a Cavs team that has been rolling as of late, ranking No. 1 in the league in net rating (+15.8) over its last 10 games. The Thunder have a net rating of +6.9 over that stretch, even though SGA has missed six games in a row.
Usually, I’d trust OKC as an underdog at home with just about anyone out, but this is a major hurdle to overcome against a potential title contender in Cleveland.
The Cavs have struggled against the spread all season – they’re just 6-11 ATS as road favorites – so I’m going to avoid that altogether and simply take the Cavs to win this game.
As good as OKC’s depth is, this is a tall task against a nearly fully healthy Cavs team on Sunday afternoon.
Pick: Cavs Moneyline (-162 at DraftKings)
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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Find Peter Dewey’s NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on BetStamp here.
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