NBA Betting: Oklahoma City Thunder @ Portland Trail Blazers
Oklahoma City Thunder @ Portland Trail Blazers Fri. April 12, 2013 10 p.m. ET
After an impressive win on the road at the Oracle Arena at the expense of the Golden State Warriors, the Oklahoma City Thunder were able to pass the San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference standings and improve their playoff position with the postseason around the corner.
Although the Thunder’s placement in the West was expected in many Las Vegas odds before the season, Oklahoma City hasn’t been able to get the best of San Antonio until the tail end of the regular season.
With Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook firing on all cylinders and expected to continue playing well with the top seed not yet secured, the Thunder will head to the Rose Garden to take on the shorthanded Portland Trail Blazers on their home floor.
Despite being one of the best home teams in the NBA every single year, the Blazers have struggled once again this season against the best of the best in the West. Oklahoma City will put rookie point guard Damian Lillard to the test on Friday with the up-and-comer having to go head-to-head with Westbrook.
With the Thunder rolling right now and few teams in the league able to contend with the West powerhouse, Oklahoma City should pull out the easy win over Portland and cover the -10 point spread. Lillard will be a thorn in their sides as he giving the Thunder backcourt a tough assignment, but in the end it will be Oklahoma City improving their standing in the conference with another win.
Prediction: Oklahoma City Thunder -10
As for player prop bets, Lillard’s is the most intriguing. Lillard is projected to score 18 points or less, but I believe he’ll easily surpass that mark with the team looking to get him going early while making Westbrook work defensively.