It’s a battle of hot streaks as both are surging as of late. The Oklahoma City Thunder should appear hungrier, though, as they are also hoping to avenge a previous loss to the Dallas Mavericks.

Catch the game tomorrow at 10:30 AM, Manila time.

AWAY: Dallas Mavericks (16-8, 8-5 AWAY)

Projected starting five:

  • Luka Doncic
  • Kyrie Irving
  • Klay Thompson
  • PJ Washington (day-to-day)
  • Daniel Gafford

The Mavericks have stitched together seven consecutive victories, and have also won 11 of their last 12. They are averaging 126.3 points per game in their active streak, winning by an average of 13 points.

In addition to that growing confidence, Dallas also won last November 18th against the Thunder, 121-119, without leading scorer Luka Doncic, no less. Kyrie Irving and PJ Washington led the way with 23 and 27 points, respectively, while five other Mavericks also reached double figures.

Doncic will be present tomorrow, and he’s got some rhythm. He will come in with back-to-back triple-doubles, and should be able to remain hungry to flex his game vs. the top-seeded Thunder. Irving is scorching too, scoring 29 and 25 in his last two outings on a combined 63.3% shooting, including 9-of-18 from beyond the arc.

Doncic and Irving have been getting all kinds of help from the supporting cast, which has put defenses on a whirlwind. It should be interesting to see who’ll step up tomorrow.

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HOME: Oklahoma City Thunder (18-5, 9-2 HOME)

Projected starting five:

  • Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
  • Isaiah Joe
  • Lu Dort
  • Aaron Wiggins
  • Isaiah Hartenstein

Sitting atop the Western Conference, the Thunder are 7-1 in their last eight games. They average 117.8 PPG with a +14.3 net rating across that span, forcing opponents to commit 18.3 turnovers per game and limiting them to just 43.1% shooting.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander posted 36 points on 13-of-19 shooting in the aforementioned loss to Dallas, while second-fiddle Jalen Williams added 27. As two of the best scoring duos in the league who can also facilitate, we’ll see if they’ll try to score more or try to get other guys involved. Lu Dort has been mostly off since that contest, but he had 18 that day, so the confidence will be there. Don’t be surprised if sharpshooter Isaiah Joe gets involved a lot too.

Isaiah Hartenstein (11.8 PPG, 12.8 RPG, 1.3 BPG) has been solid since his return, and should remain as such. He’s in an intriguing clash against his Dallas counterparts, who are likewise rim-running bigs.

PICKS:

Spread: Thunder (-4)

Over/Under: Over (231.5)

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