I think it’s safe to say the injuries have finally caught up with the OKC Thunder, who just suffered their second defeat in a row by double digits, falling to the Houston Rockets 119-98. It’s not like Chet Holmgren is the best interior defender in the league, but they sure could use an additional 7-foot big man down low to prevent opponents from scoring against them in that area. Monday sees them face the Cavs, a team that’s definitely a threat to score from their forward positions. SGA and co. have lost 2 of 3 road games so far, I’m curious to see how they bounce back after back-to-back games with under 100 points scored.
The Cavs have been flawless at home so far, winning all three games. Aside from Jaylon Tyson, who is out with an ankle issue, they only have Peyton Watson on the injury list as day-to-day with a hamstring problem. When you have two teams that are neck and neck on paper, health can more often than not determine the outcome of games. OKC thoroughly dominated last year’s regular season series, sweeping the Cavs by an average of 20 points per game in the two wins. Cleveland has lost three in a row and six of seven against this team, and given the injury situation in OKC, this might be an ideal opportunity for them to reverse some trends here.
I remember backing Phoenix to beat OKC right after that devastating Jalen Williams injury. The Thunder rallied in that game and got an emotional win, but since then they’ve just not been the same. I expect them to continue struggling, and although they likely won’t lose by 20 again, I can’t see them getting a result against the unbeaten-at-home Cavaliers. I’ll back Donovan Mitchell and company in this one.
Thunder vs Cavaliers prediction: Cavaliers -4.5 (-105) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.
