Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA
Phoenix Suns vs Oklahoma City Thunder: Kevin Durant is coming back home
The Phoenix Suns are visiting the Oklahoma City Thunder at Paycom Center on Friday.
The Suns are trying to avoid the play-in zone
The Phoenix Suns are seventh in the Western Conference with a 43-30 record. They have won four of the last five games and are coming off a 104-97 road win against the defending champions, the Denver Nuggets. The Suns are fourth in the league, shooting 49.6% from the field, and fifth, shooting 38.2% from three-point territory. Kevin Durant leads the team with 27.6 points per game, followed by Devin Booker with 27.2.
The Thunder have dropped in the standings
The Oklahoma City Thunder are third in the Western Conference with a 50-22 record. They have won five of the last seven games but are coming off a 132-126 overtime loss to the Houston Rockets. The Thunder are second in the league, shooting 49.9% from the field and 39% from deep, while they are ranked sixth, averaging 120.4 points per game. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the best player on the team, being ranked second in the league and averaging 30.4 points per game.
Betting Trends
Phoenix has won 8 of the last 12 games against Oklahoma City. The Suns are 4-1 ATS in the last 5 games overall and 3-8 ATS in the last 11 games played on Friday. The Thunder are 3-9 ATS in the last 12 games overall and 4-1 ATS in the last five games played on Friday.
Prediction and Conclusion
It is always interesting to see Kevin Durant going back to Oklahoma City, the place where he spent the first nine seasons of his career. He is having a solid year with the Suns, but the fact is that they were expected to be higher in the standings. The Suns will need to play on top of their game to finish in the top six in the conference and avoid the play-in tournament. The Thunder do not have that problem, and they are still competitive for the top seed in the West. They are a great, young, and fearless team, and they are ready for the challenge that comes. This will be a high-scoring and tight game, and the Thunder will be able to cover the +2.5-point spread.
