The New York Knicks take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night at the Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
The Knicks have lost four out of their last five games and are looking to snap a two game losing streak. After a slow start, the Thunder have won eight out of their last 10 games played including four out of their last five.
The Knicks are starting their 2018-19 season without their franchise player Kristaps Porzingis who suffered an ACL injury last season. The Knicks’ 7-3 Latvian unicorn doesn’t have a definite timetable for his return yet although we saw recent photos of him sprinting on an outdoor track. The photos don’t mean anything but they prove that Porzingis is progressing well in his rehab.
Without Porzingis, the Knicks have turned to Tim Hardaway Jr. for scoring. Hardaway is currently averaging a team high 23.2 points per game including three 3 pointers per outing. Starting center Enes Kanter has also increased his point production, contributing 15.4 points on top of 12.5 rebounds per game. Knicks 2018 first rounder Kevin Knox was expected to help in the offense but has played just 7 games so far after suffering an ankle sprain. Knox is slowly getting back into action for New York.
The Knicks are scoring just 106.4 points per game this season which is only 20th in the NBA. New York had their second worst scoring game of the season in their last game when they scored just 89 points in a home loss to the Orlando Magic. New York ranks 20th in three pointers taken per 100 possessions and are 28th in three point field goal percentage. That’s mainly because of Porzingis’ absence and the injury to shooting guard Courtney Lee.
The Thunder are looking for their second straight win and are looking to build another winning streak after having their seven game winning run snapped by the Dallas Mavericks 96-111 last November 11th. OKC started the season slow at 0-4 but are now at 8-5 and currently 5th in the Western Conference.
Defense is what has gotten the Thunder going this season. Oklahoma City is holding its opponents to 106.2 points per game this season which is 4th best in the entire NBA. In their last four games, the Thunder have limited their foes to only 94.5 points per game and they look to bring that intensity against the visiting Knicks.
The Thunder’s offense hasn’t been as good as its defense though, averaging 109.7 points per game which ranks just 18th in the entire league. 2017 MVP Russell Westbrook leads the Thunder with 24.1 points per game this season but Russ has missed the last four games with an ankle injury. Without Westbrook, Paul George has picked up the cudgels, averaging 22.6 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. Dennis Schroeder has started in the place of Westbrook and he is contributing 16.9 points and 5.2 assists per game.
The Knicks lead their all-time series against the Thunder 66-64 but Oklahoma City has won seven out of the last 10 meetings between these two teams including four out of the last 5. New York won their most recent meeting 111-96 last December 16, 2017 at the Madison Square Garden.
The Knicks are 1-4 SU in their last 5 games played and are 2-5 SU in their seven road games played this season. On the other hand, the Thunder are 8-2 SU in their last 10 games played and are 5-2 SU in seven home games played this season. Head to head, the Knicks are 1-4 SU in their last 5 games against the Thunder and 1-4 SU when playing the Thunder at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Both teams are playing without their respective franchise players. New York is without Porzingis while Oklahoma City is without Westbrook. But while the Knicks have found it difficult or even impossible to fill the void left by Porzingis, the Thunder have another All-Star closer in Paul George and have a starter quality back-up in Dennis Schroeder who have helped them cope with Westbrook’s absence. OKC is also solid at home with their 5-2 record while the Knicks are only 2-5 on the road this season. We’re picking the Oklahoma City Thunder to beat the New York Knicks on 11/14/18.
The Knicks are 6-6-2 ATS in 14 games played this season and are 3-3-1 ATS in their seven road games played so far during their 2018-19 campaign. The Thunder are 8-5 ATS in their first 13 games of the season and are 4-3 ATS in seven home games played this season. Head to head, the Thunder are 6-4 ATS in their last 10 games against the Knicks.
Oklahoma City is 6-0 ATS in their last six games after allowing at least 100 points in their previous game while the Knicks are 1-4 ATS in their last 5 games after an SU loss of over 10 points in their previous game.
After a slow start, the Thunder have gotten going. They have played well against the spread this season and against the Knicks. They have won four in a row ATS at home and eight out of their last 9 games ATS overall. New York is 2-6 ATS in their last 8 games against Western Conference teams. Prediction: Thunder -8.5
The under is 8-6 in the Knicks’ 14 games played this season and the under is also 4-3 in New York’s seven road games played so far. On the other hand, the total has gone under in 7 out of the 13 games of the Thunder this season but the over is 5-2 in their 7 games played at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The Knicks are without Porzingis and the Thunder are without Westbrook. The Thunder are ranked 18th in the league in scoring and the Knicks are at #22. OKC is 22nd in field goal percentage while New York is even worse at 27th. These teams aren’t just scoring well this season plus add the fact that the Thunder are #4 in the NBA in scoring defense. Prediction: Under 215.5
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