Thunder vs. Pacers Game 2 prediction, odds, best bets for NBA Finals: Why OKC is primed to bounce back
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Thunder vs. Pacers Game 2 prediction, odds, best bets for NBA Finals: Why OKC is primed to bounce back
The Indiana Pacers lead the Oklahoma City Thunder 1-0 in the NBA Finals. The Thunder won a league-best 68 games in the regular season. Oklahoma City is heavily favored at FanDuel to win Game 2 at home (-600) and take the series (-300) The Thunder have a +220 point differential in 10 home games this postseason. The Pacers are the underdogs for their third consecutive series.. Isaiah Hartenstein had nine rebounds in 17 minutes in Game 1. He’s probably going to be in line for more minutes even if he remains on the bench in Game 2. He was removed from the Game 1 starting lineup. His line is significantly lower, and that’s a function of playing time. The pick: Hartenstein over 6.5 rebounds in Game2.
Despite Indiana’s Game 1 win, OKC is still heavily favored at FanDuel to win Game 2 at home (-600) and take the series (-300).
Powered by NBA MVP Shai GIlgeous-Alexander, Oklahoma City won a league-best 68 games in the regular season. They’re 12-5 so far in these playoffs, and, after needing seven games to get past the Denver Nuggets in the second round, dispatched the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games to win the West finals.
The Pacers, led by Tyrese Haliburton, are the underdogs for their third consecutive series. Indiana knocked out the No. 1 seeded Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round and then took out the Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals.
Thunder vs. Pacers: Game 2 info
Time: 8 p.m. ET | Date: Sunday, June 8
Location: Paycom Center — Oklahoma City
TV channel: ABC | Streaming: fubo (Try for free)
Odds (via DraftKings): Thunder -11, O/U: 228.5
Thunder vs. Pacers: Game 2 best bets
The Oklahoma City Thunder have lost consecutive games only twice this season. Once came in April when they’d already run away with the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference. The other came in November during the brief period in which Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren were both injured. When they lost Game 1 of the Denver series at home, they won Game 2 by 43 points. The Thunder have a +220 point differential in 10 home games this postseason. Every indicator is telling us to expect a Thunder blowout in Game 2, so that’s what we’ll take. The pick: Thunder -11
There was a lot of talk after Game 1 about how the Thunder failed to turn their turnovers into points, but it actually makes quite a bit of sense on paper. The Pacers allowed the second-fewest fast-break points in the NBA this season. They are fast and they don’t overcommit to offensive-rebounding, so their defense off of turnovers is almost as good as it gets. But the team that allowed the fewest fast-break points this season? The Thunder, who are even faster and deeper than the Pacers. If the easy stuff in transition is gone, you’re basically betting on outlier shooting to hit the over. The Pacers got outlier shooting in Game 1, making 18-of-39 3-pointers, and this was still comfortably an under. Game 2 should be as well. The pick: Under 228.5
Isaiah Hartenstein had nine rebounds in 17 minutes in Game 1. His line is significantly lower, and that’s a function of playing time. He was removed from the Game 1 starting lineup. But considering the way Game 1 went, he’s probably going to be in line for more minutes even if he remains on the bench in Game 2. Those easy points off of turnovers that the Thunder live off of might not be available, so they might need to emphasize rebounding more to maintain their dominance in the possession game. They got around 53% of available rebounds in Game 1 during Hartenstein’s minutes, but only around 39% when he was off of the floor. I’m expecting more Hartenstein in Game 2, so I’m going over on his rebounds. The pick: Hartenstein over 6.5 rebounds