The Sacramento Kings host the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Golden 1 Center on Wednesday night.
Sacramento is finally back home after a five-game road trip. The Kings dropped the first three games of that trip but ended it with back to back wins over the Chicago Bulls and Minnesota Timberwolves. The Kings are 8-13 SU at home this season. Oklahoma City lost at home to the Dallas Mavericks last Monday. The Thunder had won five in a row before that defeat. OKC is 13-10 SU on the road this season. Sacramento nipped Oklahoma City 94-93 in their first meeting of the 2019-20 NBA season.
Five-Game Winning Streak Over
The Oklahoma City Thunder saw their five-game winning streak end at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night. The Thunder played without Chris Paul who sat out Monday’s game after Kobe Bryant’s sudden death. With the loss, OKC fell to 28-20 on the season, third in the Northwest Division and five games off the division lead.
Dennis Shroder led the Thunder with 21 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 16 points and 11 boards but he shot just 5-20 from the field. Danilo Gallinari contributed 14 points and six assists while Steven Adams had 9 points and 4 rebounds in 24 minutes of action.
The Thunder rank 17th in the league in scoring at 110.3 points per game. They are 11th overall in scoring defense at 108.1 opponents points per game allowed. Oklahoma City ranks 23rd in rebounding at 43.4 boards grabbed per contest and they are 26th in passing at 21.9 dimes per outing.
Comeback Win for the Ages
The Sacramento Kings won their second consecutive game with a comeback victory for the ages on Monday night. The Kings trailed the Minnesota Timberwolves by 17 points with 2:49 left in the game but rallied to win 133-129 in overtime. Before that game, NBA teams were 0-8,378 since 1997 when trailing by 17 or more points with three minutes or fewer left in the game.
Buddy Hield poured in a career-high 42 points as he led the Kings to a 33-11 run in the final 5:42 of regulation. De’Aaron Fox had 22 points, including 17 in the second half and overtime period. Nemanja Bejilca added 17 points for Sacramento who ended its five-game road trip with back to back wins.
The Kings rank 24th in the NBA in scoring at 107.1 points per game. They are 15th overall when it comes to scoring defense at 110.2 points per game allowed. Sacramento is 27th in rebounding at 42.6 boards grabbed per contest and they are 22nd in passing at 22.9 assists per outing.
Who Wins?
Oklahoma City is 5-1 SU in their last six games played. The Thunder are 4-0 SU in their last four games played on the road, and 4-1 SU in their last five games against an opponent from the Western Conference. Sacramento is 5-15 SU in their last 20 games played. The Kings are 1-3 SU in their last four games played at home, and 4-9 SU in their last 13 games against the Western Conference. Head to head, the Kings are 5-3 SU in their last 8 games played against the Thunder.
OKC is coming off a loss to the Mavericks but before that defeat, this team won five straight games. Four of the wins were against sub .500 teams and one against the reeling Rockets. Chris Paul sat out Monday’s loss in the wake of Kobe Bryant’s death but CP3 is expected to be back despite being listed as day to day.
The Kings are still without Marvin Bagley III who is dealing with a foot injury Sacramento has momentum here because they are coming off a comeback win for the ages against the T-Wolves last Monday. Buddy Hield is coming off a career night with 42 points and should have another good outing at home.
The Thunder should have a complete cast when they face the Kings on Wednesday night. Chris Paul is expected to return after sitting out their last game in the wake of Kobe Bryant’s death. With Paul back, the OKC offense should be back to normal and they should be too much for a Sacramento team that will be without Bagley.
Prediction: Oklahoma City Thunder
Other Bets to Make
The Thunder are 5-1 ATS in their last six games played. Oklahoma City is 10-0 ATS in their last 10 games played on the road. Sacramento is 6-13-1 ATS in their last 20 games played. The Kings are 1-2-1 ATS in their last four games played at home, 5-10 ATS in their last 15 games against the Northwest Division, and 2-6-1 ATS in their last nine Wednesday games.
Thunder
-3 (-110)
Kings
+3 (-110)
Odds from SportsBetting as of 01/29/20
Before their loss to Dallas last Monday, the Thunder won five consecutive games by an average winning margin of 10.4 points per game. The Thunder are one of the best teams in the NBA when it comes to covering the spread. OKC is 32-16 ATS so far this season. The Kings have blown hot and cold in the winning column and they have struggled against the spread in their last 20 games. I like the Thunder to cover here.
Prediction: Thunder -3
The total has gone over in seven out of the last 10 games played by the Thunder. Oklahoma City has seen the total go over in five out of their last seven games against the Pacific Division. The total has gone over in seven out of the last eight games played by the Kings. The over is 5-1 in Sacramento’s last six games played at home. Head to head, the total has gone over in seven out of the last nine games between the Thunder and Kings in Sacramento.
Over
221.5 (-115)
Under
221.5 (-105)
Odds from SportsBetting as of 01/29/20
These teams have combined to score an average of 222.33 points per game in their last three head to head meetings. The Thunder have scored an average of 117.5 points per game in their last four outings. On the other hand, the Kings have allowed at least 118 points in six out of their last 8 assignments. Both these teams are in the bottom half in the league in scoring but neither is a Top 10 defense this season. OKC’s offense has been on target as of lat while Sacramento’s defense has been generous in their last eight games. I like these teams to hit the over.
Prediction: Over 221.5