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Thursday night's five-game slate will include the OKC Thunder vs Utah Jazz game in Salt Lake City. The Thunder emerged triumphant when they last played against the Jazz with a 134-120 margin on Dec. 11. Utah was struggling to find its feet then but turned a corner shortly before Christmas.
Entering Thursday's matchup, the Jazz seem to have the better momentum behind them as one of the NBA's hottest teams. They are on a six-game winning streak, tied for longest active run with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Meanwhile, the Thunder have suffered back-to-back losses against the LA Lakers and LA Clippers.
Utah is 22-20 on the season, ninth in the Western Conference, while OKC is second with a 27-13 record. The former's recent form gives it the upper hand, but the latter's overall season record keeps it in contention to break the Jazz's juggernaut.
OKC Thunder vs Utah Jazz preview, prediction, odds and betting tips
The OKC Thunder vs Utah Jazz game is scheduled for Thursday, January 18, 2024, at Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah. The game starts at 9:00 PM ET. NBA League Pass will allow viewers to stream the game online via a subscription. Local fans can watch the game for free on-air on Bally Sports Oklahoma and KJZZ (Utah).
Moneyline: Thunder (-154), Jazz (+130)
Spread: Thunder -3 (-110), Jazz +3 (-110)
Total (O/U): Thunder -110 (o246.5), Jazz (u246.5)
OKC Thunder vs Utah Jazz Preview
The OKC Thunder vs Utah Jazz game cannot be previewed based on their previous encounter and respective seasons. The Jazz have looked a lot different since the resurgent run after their Dec. 11 loss to the Thunder.
The Jazz boast a 15- 4 record since then, the second-best behind the league-leading Boston Celtics. They have a 120.9 offensive (seventh) and 113.9 defensive rating (11th). The Jazz were bottom five on offense and defense before Dec. 12.
Meanwhile, the Thunder have nearly been as consistent as the Celtics and West-leading Minnesota Timberwolves. Amid Utah's unexpected tear, OKC has gone 12-6 since beating Thursday's opponents. The Thunder are fourth on offense (122.4 rating) and ninth on defense (113.6 rating) in that stretch.
The game will simply come down to the better team winning that day, as they couldn't have been matched as evenly, considering their output on both ends of the floor. Utah's homecourt and momentum give it the advantage, though.
OKC Thunder vs Utah Jazz starting lineups
The Thunder and Jazz are both injury-free leading up to Thursday's game. They are expected to roll out their usual starting lineups, barring a last-minute scratch.
The Thunder will have Josh Giddey run point alongside Shai Gilgeous-Alexander at the two. Jalen Williams, Luguentz Dort and Chet Holmgren will man the frontcourt.
The Jazz will have Kris Dunn and Colin Sexton as the starting guards, with Lauri Markkanen, John Collins and Simone Fontecchio on the frontcourt.
Update: Dort has been ruled out due to illness ahead of the game. Cason Wallace will replace him in the starting lineup.
OKC Thunder vs Utah Jazz betting tips
Thunder superstar Shai-Gilgeous Alexander has an over/under of 31.5 points. That's just a shade above his season average of 31.0 points. SGA has scored 24 and 19 points, respectively, in his last two games, so this might be a tricky bet, albeit he's favored to go over 31.5 points. However, he's averaged 30.4 ppg in his last nine games.
Lauri Markkanen has an over-under of 24.5 points. He's favored to go over the projection. Markkanen has scored above 25 points in three of his last four games. With the Thunder lacking a lengthy perimeter defender to stop Markkanen from scoring freely, betting over Markkanen to score over 24.5 points could be a solid bet.
Chet Holmgren has an over-under of 2.5 blocks. He's not favored to go over it despite averaging 2.5 blocks a game this season. Holmgren has averaged 1.7 bpg in the last nine appearances and 2.0 in his last three. It seems not to be a wise pick to bet on Homgren completing over 2.5 blocks.
OKC Thunder vs Utah Jazz prediction
The OKC Thunder are favored to win against the Utah Jazz, but not by a huge margin. It's expected to be a close one. The Thunder haven't lost three straight games, while the Jazz are on a 6-0 run. OKC also enters this contest with a healthy roster, which gives it a solid chance to get back in the win column.
