The top sportsbooks have released their NBA odds for Wednesday’s game between the New Orleans Pelicans and the Oklahoma City Thunder. For your best bets, I will recommend investing in the Thunder.
If you’re thinking about placing bets on other matchups for the NBA playoffs, keep reading for a comprehensive analysis.
NBA Best Bet: Thunder -7.5 (-112) at BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review)
New Orleans Pelicans vs. Oklahoma City Thunder
Wednesday, April 24, 2024 – 09:30 PM ET at Paycom Center
Missing Zion
Zion’s absence is a huge deal for the Pelicans that they cannot overcome. This is not some role-player. Zion is their leading scorer, and their best offensive piece.
He missed one game between these two teams in the regular season. In that game, the Pelicans scored 83 points despite being at home. If you didn’t learn your lesson from that game, the Pelicans again struggled offensively in Game 1, mustering 92 points.
Without Zion, the Pelicans lack a player who can pose such a threat inside as to demand the attention of the opposing team’s perimeter defenders. New Orleans becomes easier to defend behind the arc and in general.
Why Was Game 1 So Close?
Game 1 was so close because the Thunder had an off day in terms of their shooting. The key is that the opportunities were there. They attempted 23 wide-open threes, but only made eight of them.
Moreover, they missed 77.9 percent of their open three-point attempts. Oklahoma City owns the second-best three-point percentage in the NBA, so one has to expect them to shoot better.
After all, the Thunder scored as many as 119 points in their regular season games against the Pelicans, and that game took place in New Orleans.
Gilgeous-Alexander & Holmgren
I was not impressed by Thunder center Chet Holmgren in Game 1.
He can do better than 15 points. This is a good matchup for him, him being as dynamic and versatile offensively as he is, and his Pelicans counterpart Jonas Valanciunas being as slow and tied to the basket as he is.
Expect more from Holmgren in Game 2. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did impress me with his 28 points. He benefits from having a smart head coach who understands how to get him to be defended by someone other than Herb Jones.
NBA Best Bet
A better Holmgren, a continually strong Gilgeous-Alexander, and much better three-point shooting will lead to a dominant Game 2 win following the Game 1 thriller.
NBA Best Bet: Thunder -7.5 (-112) at BetOnline
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.
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