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Thunder try to get back in win column Friday at Lakers
By: Freddy Wander - StatFox
Published: 12/19/2014  at  6:27:00 AM
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OKLAHOMA CITY THUNDER (12-14)

at LOS ANGELES LAKERS (8-17)

Tip-off: Friday, 10:35 p.m. ET
Line: Oklahoma City -6, Total: 209

The Thunder look to rebound from their first loss in their past nine attempts when they head to Staples Center to take on the Lakers Friday night.

Oklahoma City did not have the ideal start to the season, but had its superstars return from injury and has gone 7-2 SU (5-4 ATS) with both Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook in the lineup. The Thunder were once again on their way to a victory against the Warriors on the road Thursday night after jumping out to an early double-digit lead, but a tweaked ankle to Durant and the depth of the Warriors was just too much to overcome, as 2.5-point underdog Oklahoma City left with a 114-109 defeat. The Thunder hit a solid 47.7% of their shots, but it was their worst defensive effort of the season, as they allowed a season-high 114 points on 48-of-94 shooting (51.1% FG), including a dozen Golden State made three-pointers. Los Angeles was looking like a candidate for worst team in the league through the first part of the season, but recently the club has rattled off three wins in the past four contests, including a shocking 112-110 win as 12-point underdogs against the Spurs last Friday. The club had a chance to complete a perfect three-game road trip, but was clobbered 110-91 at Indiana on Monday. As 5-point underdogs, the Lakers shot a dismal 33% from the field, but continued to show tremendous ball control with just nine turnovers. They have coughed up the rock only 9.2 times per game over the past five contests. The road has not been a happy place for Oklahoma City this season, as the team has gone 5-9 SU (4-9-1 ATS) in away games, but will have a solid chance at earning a win in this contest, as Los Angeles is a poor 3-9 SU (4-6-2 ATS) at home. The Thunder were able to go 3-1 SU (2-2 ATS) in this series last season with a hefty 117.5 PPG, as they were tabbed as 11-point favorites each time. Overall since the 2011-12 campaign, Oklahoma City owns a dominant 12-4 SU record (9-6-1 ATS) in this matchup, which included a 4-1 playoff series win in the 2011-12 Western Conference semifinals. Some trends to keep an eye on for Friday include that the Thunder are 64-42 ATS (60%) over the past three seasons after scoring 105+ points, while the Lakers are 37-26 ATS (59%) after allowing 110+ points in the same timeframe. SF Kevin Durant (ankle) could once again be out while teammate PF Mitch McGary (tibia) is definitely out, and is listed as questionable, while L.A. is not dealing with any new significant injuries.

Can the Thunder cover the moderate spread on Friday night, possibly without Kevin Durant? For the answer, connect to The Platinum Sheet for all the Expert picks throughout the entire 2014-15 season. While StatFox Forecaster has a stellar 59% ATS record (71-49-1) in featured games this season, the five experts have also caught fire with a collective 62% ATS mark (48-29-2) in NBA Best Bets since Nov. 29. StatFox Brian is 77% ATS (13-4) during this timeframe to give him a 59% ATS record (23-16) in NBA Best Bets this season, while StatFox Gary is 67% ATS (10-5) since Nov. 29 to improve to 58% ATS (22-16) in NBA Best Bets this season. Also during this surge, StatFox Dave is 69% ATS (11-5-1).

The Thunder’s offensive numbers do not look great overall as they are scoring 96.2 PPG (9th-worst in league) behind 44% FG (9th-worst in NBA), but this part of their game is on the upswing with the recent return of their two star players, and triple-digits should be a given nearly every night with a healthy roster. What’s really been impressive this season is their defense, whose 94.7 PPG allowed leads the NBA, thanks to giving up a meager 94.7 PPG on 42.2% shooting from the field (2nd in league). PG Russell Westbrook (26.9 PPG, 6.9 APG, 5.6 RPG, 1.9 SPG) is playing at a torrid pace this season and is coming off his third 30-point performance (33 points, 8 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals) in his past five games. He’s always been able to put up nice numbers against this Lakers team in 20 starts with 22.1 PPG, 8.0 APG, 5.4 RPG and 1.7 SPG. SF Kevin Durant (22.4 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 3.6 APG) scored a career-high 30 first-half points on Thursday before coming down awkwardly on the foot of an opposing player, but has said that he wants to be on the court for this one. It’s no surprise he wants to face L.A. as he has put up some great numbers against them with 28.1 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 4.0 APG and 1.3 SPG over 25 career starts. PF Serge Ibaka (14.4 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 2.3 BPG) has tallied 14 blocks over his past five games and is coming off a great all-around performance on Thursday (12 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 blocks, 1 steal). He was a force last season over four starts against the Lakers with 16.3 PPG (55% FG) to go along with 11.3 RPG and 3.8 BPG.

The Lakers’ offense has remained steady throughout the season with 102.2 PPG (13th in league) despite a poor shooting effort (43.5% FG, 8th-worst in league). Meanwhile, it is their putrid defense which has earned them most of their losses, as opponents are scoring a league-high 109.5 PPG against them while making nearly half of their shots (47.8% FG, 3rd-worst in NBA). SG Kobe Bryant (25.2 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1.4 SPG) has continued to be one of the best scorers in the league at the age of 36 and has surpassed 20 points in each of his past four games while shooting a mere 35% from the field in the time. He’s faced Oklahoma City plenty of times (61 games, 54 starts), where he's averaged 24.8 PPG (45% FG), 4.6 RPG, 4.5 APG and 1.5 SPG. PF Carlos Boozer (13.0 PPG, 7.4 RPG) has started to turn his year around with three consecutive double-doubles, as he has averaged 16.3 PPG and 12.0 RPG in that time. Last season in his two games against this Thunder team, Boozer was able to average a double-double of 11.0 PPG (despite 35% FG) and 10.0 RPG as a member of the Bulls. SF Nick Young (15.3 PPG) has given this team a spark, including an 18-point performance against the Pacers, but has been poor over his 15 career meetings (5 starts) against Oklahoma City with 11.7 PPG on 37% FG.


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