Dallas Mavericks vs Oklahoma City Thunder NBA Picks, Odds, Predictions 3/3/21
2021-03-03 20:30:00 EDT
The Oklahoma City Thunder pay a visit to the Dallas Mavericks at the American Airlines Center on Wednesday night.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have been in a rut as they’ve lost five of their last eight games and they will still be licking their wounds after getting thrashed by the Nuggets in a 126-96 home loss on Saturday. Darius Bazley led the team in scoring with 22 points on eight of 16 shooting, Isaiah Roby and Ty Jerome each scored 15 points while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander chipped in with 13 points and six assists. As a team, the Thunder shot just 42 percent from the field and 11 of 47 from the 3-point line, but this game was over before it really began as the Thunder never looked threatening after falling behind by double-digits in the first quarter.
Meanwhile, the Dallas Mavericks have been in great form lately as they’ve won nine of their past 12 games and they will be aiming for a third straight victory after outlasting the Magic in a 130-124 road win on Monday. Luka Doncic led the team with 33 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists, Jalen Brunson added 24 points off the bench while Kristaps Porzingis chipped in with 17 points, 10 rebounds and three assists. As a team, the Mavericks shot 52 percent from the field and 17 of 46 from the 3-point line as they took the narrow lead at halftime, before pushing the lead out to 18 points in the third quarter which proved to be just enough as the Magic rallied late.
Looking at the betting trends, the Thunder are 35-17 ATS in their last 52 road games and 6-2-1 ATS in their last nine games following a loss. The Mavericks are 3-10 ATS in their last 13 home games, 5-17 ATS in their last 22 games against a team with a losing record and 5-13 ATS in their last 18 games overall.
Head to head, the under is 5-1 in the last six meetings overall, the Thunder are 0-6 ATS in the last six meetings in Dallas and the Thunder are 2-7 ATS in the last nine meetings overall.
The Thunder have struggled to win games lately and they might still be scratching their heads after their 30-point loss to the Nuggets on Saturday, while the Mavericks are coming into this one with plenty of momentum with nine wins in their last 12 games. The Thunder haven’t played since Saturday, so they’ll have the fresher legs in this contest and the Mavericks could be shorthanded as Luka Doncic is currently listed as questionable for this one. The betting trends favor the Mavericks in this matchup, but I’m taking the Thunder with the points if Doncic doesn’t play in this one.
