The Phoenix Suns will welcome the Oklahoma City Thunder in for a nationally-televised Friday night clash. The hosts haven’t played for eight days, while the Thunder fell just short in an overtime effort Thursday night.
Let’s dive into the specifics of this matchup and check out the best Phoenix Suns picks and see what we can do in terms of making a Thunder vs Suns prediction.
Phoenix Suns vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Odds
Phoenix Suns vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Information
Phoenix Suns vs Oklahoma City Thunder
Location: Footprint Center, Phoenix, AZ.
Date and Time: Friday, February 24, 2023, 10 p.m. ET.
How to Watch: ESPN
Phoenix Suns vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Recent Scores
Paul George and Terance Mann combined for 52 points, and the Los Angeles Clippers downed the Suns 116-107 last Thursday night in the final league game before the All-Star break.
Phoenix whiffed on nine of its first ten three-point attempts. Only Josh Okogie warmed up later, leading the team with 24 points. He was 6 of 12 from behind the arc, but the rest of the team made five combined.
Devin Booker totaled 19 points and nine assists, Deandre Ayton managed to score 18 points, and newcomer Terrance Ross had 16. Booker was 1-of-6 from three-point range but tied Steve Nash’s franchise record with 1,051 treys.
Utah’s Lauri Markkanen knocked down three free throws with 4.6 seconds left in overtime to give the Jazz a permanent advantage and finished with 43 points as the Thunder bowed, 120-119, on Thursday night.
Oklahoma City allowed Markkanen 18 points in the fourth frame, helping the Jazz climb back from a nine-point deficit in the quarter. Walker Kessler tipped in a layup with 4.6 seconds left to force overtime.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander bucketed 39 points and missed the mark on a potential game-winning jumper at the overtime horn. He had eight rebounds and a total of seven assists. Josh Giddey scored 18 points and 11 rebounds, Kenrich Williams managed 16 points off the bench, and Lu Dort contributed 11 points.
The Thunder never trailed after halftime until the closing seconds of overtime.
Phoenix Suns vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Betting Analysis
Phoenix Suns Facts to Know
The Suns have a 21-15 record in conference outings. Phoenix is third in the Western Conference, and NBA team stats have them shooting 37.8% from deep. Damion Lee has shot 43.9% from three-point range.
Ayton is, on average, scoring 18.7 points and 10.1 rebounds, while Lee has been good for 9.9 points and 2.9 rebounds over a 10-game stretch.
Oklahoma City Thunder Facts to Know
Gilgeous-Alexander is fifth in the league in NBA player stats, putting up 31 points per game.
His team has gone 15-18 against Western Conference foes. Oklahoma City ranks third in the Western Conference with scoring 117.9 points per game — and is shooting 47.0%.
Updates
Oklahoma City’s Alexsej Pokusevski is out with a lower leg ailment. Landry Shamet, Cameron Payne, and Kevin Durant are all out for the Suns.
Phoenix Suns vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Betting Preview
Before making a Thunder vs Suns prediction, it is important to take a quick look at the NBA odds today!
The odds see Phoenix as a 6.5-point home favorite here with -114 odds. The Oklahoma City Thunder odds are -108 to cover the spread and +245 underdogs on the money line. The Suns are -300 in that regard.
The total is set a 230.5, with both the over and the under being set at -110.
Phoenix Suns vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Betting Prediction
NBA matchups like this one are usually pretty fun. In Oklahoma City, you have an upstart crew that’s pretty young and should start to make some noise in years to come. Of course, the Suns are primed to win now, with their trade for the superstar, Durant, the biggest indicator of such.
Even with Durant sitting until March, his new team should have a pretty good hold on Friday night.
That all being said, our Thunder vs Suns prediction is that Phoenix covers. Add that to your NBA picks today, and enjoy what should be a solid game on the NBA schedule.
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