Game: Golden State Warriors at Oklahoma City
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
Odds: Warriors -420, Thunder +345
Total: 223.5
Golden State is off to a great start in the 2021-22 NBA season. The Warriors are a perfect 3-0 with three wins over all of their in-state rivals – the Lakers, Clippers, and Kings. Stephen Curry, no surprise, is also off to a great start leading the team in scoring (31.0 ppg), rebounding (9.0 rpg), assists (7.0 apg), and steals (2.3 spg).
It hasn’t been all Curry though for Golden State. Jordan Poole has had two games in which he scored 20 or more points and he’s averaging 17 per game. Andrew Wiggins is scoring 15.7 per game and Draymond Green is doing his thing – 10.0 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 6.3 assists per game.
As a result of their play thus far this season, the Warriors have won three straight and covered the spread in two of the three. Only the Clippers were able to stay close to Golden State in a 115-113 Warriors victory. That game was actually Golden State’s lowest point total for the young season. They have scored 115 or more points in all three of their games.
That is the result of some pretty solid shooting. The Warriors rank in the top ten in both field goal percentage and three-point shooting. Curry is shooting 38.9 percent from behind the arc and, as a team, the Warriors are hitting threes at a 39.3 percent clip. That ranks seventh in the NBA right now.
The Warriors’ successful shooting will be a problem for tonight’s opponent – Oklahoma City. The Thunder have lost all three of their games so far this season. They haven’t just lost either. The Thunder has been blown out in two of the three games and has lost all three by double digits. Part of the problem is defense.
Oklahoma City ranks 24th in opponent shooting percentage (47.1 percent) and 24th in opponent three-point shooting percentage (38.1). That could make for a long night for the Thunder. The Warriors also play at a very high tempo. Currently, Golden State is No. 2 in the NBA in terms of pace. That means plenty of shot attempts for the Warriors. Surprisingly, two of the Warriors’ three games this season have gone Under the total.
The Thunder relies on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander for its offense, but he hasn’t found his groove yet this season. The Thunder guard has only surpassed 20 points once this season and OKC lacks consistent secondary scoring threats. Gilgeous-Alexander averages 20 points a game and C Mike Muscala (11.0 ppg) is the only other OKC player to average in double figures.
Golden State has covered the spread in nine of its last 11 games. The Warriors are 14-6 straight up in the last 20 games against OKC and they are 5-0 ATS in the last five games between the two teams. The Thunder is 1-8 ATS in their last nine games and that includes a 0-3 ATS mark in the three games this season.