With this series tied at one game apiece after a thrilling Game 2 win, the Dallas Mavericks will look to put themselves in the driver’s seat when they play host to the Oklahoma City Thunder for Games 3 this coming Thursday night. Can Dallas pull off another huge win? Or will Kevin Durant and the Thunder bounce back on the road?
Read on below for a complete breakdown of this Western Conference showdown. And while you’re at it, check out our preview of Game 3 between the Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets here. The Warriors currently hold a 2-0 lead in that series.
Dallas Mavericks vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Game 3 Preview
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas
When: Thursday, April 21, 2016, 7:00 PM ET
Line: Dallas Mavericks (+9) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (-9); total: 195.5– view all NBA lines
TV Broadcast: TNT
Betting on the Dallas Mavericks
Expect the Mavs to continue being very physical on defense, and hope that they’re able to prevent Kevin Durant or Russell Westbrook from finding a rhythm. But if they fail to do so, the trio of Dirk Nowitzki, Deron Williams and Raymond Felton will have to muster all the buckets to match up with the Thunder, who are the second-best scoring team in the regular season.
Nowitzki was relatively inefficient for Dallas, as he posted 17 points on 7-of-19 shooting from the floor in Game 2. Williams and Felton, meanwhile, did a solid job in leading the offense by combining for 34 points and eight assists in the same game.
Felton, in particular, had the most surprising performance. He didn’t just lead the team in points (21), but also in rebounds (11). The Mavs might just be able to get their second-straight win if Felton, who is averaging 9.3 points at home this season, finds a way to come up with another all-around outing.
If not, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if the Mavs lose this one by a lot, and ultimately allow the Thunder to reclaim the home-court advantage in the series.
Dallas is 3-7 SU and 4-6 ATS in its past 10 home games against Oklahoma City.
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Betting on the Oklahoma City Thunder
Don’t expect Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook to struggle so badly again. The two combined for just 40 points on 27.2 percent shooting during the loss in Game 2, but they should be more than ready to bounce back and put the Thunder back in control of this series.
A raucous American Airlines Center crowd will surely do everything it can to distract Durant and Westbrook from finding their respective grooves. Well, that’s not really going to matter because the two All-Stars have been in this kind of situation before. In fact, the noise and boos are just going to motivate them even more.
Durant is not a former league MVP and one of the top three scorers this season for nothing. He’s going to seize this opportunity to remind everybody why he’s one of the best basketball players in world today. Durant is averaging 28.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 3.9 assists across 74 playoff games.
Westbrook, on the other hand, leads the NBA with 18 triple-doubles in the regular season, and is posting career postseason numbers of 24. 1 points, 6.0 boards and 6.8 dimes.
However, the Thunder’s bench needs to show up and lift some of the scoring burden off Durant and Westbrook. That said, the pressure is on Dion Waiters and Enes Kanter to rebound from their forgettable performance in Game 2.
OKC is 7-3 SU and 6-4 ATS in its past 10 visits to American Airlines Arena.
Writer’s Prediction
Durant and Westbrook find their mark, and leads OKC (-9) to the double-digit victory.
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