The Oklahoma City Thunder host the Denver Nuggets, Wednesday April 20th, for Game 2 of the Western Conference quarter-finals. Oklahoma City has a 1-0 lead and has won three straight over the Nuggets. NBA oddsmakers have the Thunder as -5 point home favourites over the Nuggets with the over/under set at 205.5 points. Be sure to check the Nuggets vs Thunder NBA Point Spreads and get your predictions in early.
Denver (0-1) lost 103-107 in game 1; and they’ve had two days rest to try and figure out what went wrong. Perhaps most infuriating was the "botched play," as Denver's Ty Lawson called it: It was just the opposite of everything that made the new-look Nuggets the new-look Nuggets. "We kind of messed it up," Lawson said. "They denied us what we wanted to do and we didn't have a counter for that. It was probably the best shot we could have gotten right there." Look for Chandler to play a lot of minutes tonight. Coach Karl said Chandler was Denver's best defender on Kevin Durant in Game 1. Chandler also might be asked to guard Russell Westbrook. Durant (41) and Westbrook (31) contributed 72 points to the Thunder's victory in Game 1. So the Nuggets' defense against that duo will be just as important as their offense. Kenyon Martin suggested several strategies Denver could use to slow Durant — including sending a double-team to make him pass and making him work harder on defense. He recalled that Durant used to need to cover Carmelo Anthony on defense when he played the Nuggets and "that boy beats you up bad when he's got the ball, so that takes your legs a little bit." "You've got to make him guard, you've got to make him pass the ball — make him do the things that didn't get him drafted," Martin said. "Scoring got him drafted. … They didn't draft Kevin Durant because he's an excellent passer or he's a lockdown defender. I know this for a fact."
Oklahoma City (1-0) got crazy production from Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook, who combined for 72 points in Oklahoma City's Game 1 victory over Denver. Durant and Westbrook made a combined 18 of 25 jump shots. And 14 of the made baskets came with a Denver player's hand in their face. The NBA's highest scoring tandem other than Miami's LeBron James and Dwyane Wade during the regular season — combined for more points in regulation than they did in any regular-season game. The only time they had more in a game was when Durant scored 40 and Westbrook 35 in a double-overtime win against Washington in January. "We did OK. We do need to do a better job giving those guys some outlets, but I thought we were solid," Nick Collison said. "A lot of things we do are not in terms of scoring points."
Recent Trends to Consider:
Over is 8-3 in the last 11 meetings in Oklahoma City.
Nuggets are 4-10 ATS in the last 14 meetings.
Nuggets are 2-6 ATS in the last 8 meetings in Oklahoma City.
Nuggets are 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games as an underdog of 5.0-10.5.
Nuggets are 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games as a road underdog of 5.0-10.5.
Nuggets are 12-2 ATS in their last 14 games as a road underdog.
Nuggets are 14-3 ATS in their last 17 games following a S.U. loss.
Thunder are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a favorite of 5.0-10.5.
Thunder are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games as a home favorite.
Nuggets vs Thunder
When: Wednesday, April 20, 8:00 PM ET
Pick: Thunder -5
Point-Spreads.com recommends you check out NBA Point Spreads before Nuggets vs Thunder game.
The Bottom Line: The Thunder will play the same game they did in game 1, which means a win. Be sure to check Nuggets vs Thunder Basketball Point Spreads and get your predictions in early.
