NBA Betting: Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Charlotte Bobcats
by Mike Rose
NBA betting action takes center stage on Wednesday night in Charlotte, where the Charlotte Bobcats will duke it out with the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Both of these teams are mired in the heat of a playoff chase. Charlotte is three games safe of the #9 seed in the Eastern Conference and currently in the #6 position.
The Thunder look to be in significantly better shape as the fifth best team in the Western Conference through 65 games, and they're just a game back of the Jazz for home court advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
Oklahoma City Thunder (41-24, 39-26 ATS) vs. Charlotte Bobcats (34-32, 36-30 ATS)
NBA Odds:
Oklahoma City Thunder -1.5
Charlotte Bobcats +1.5
Game Total 187
Is there any team in the NBA that can stop F Kevin Durant? The former Texas Longhorn enters tonight ranked #2 in the league in scoring at 29.8 points per game, just a tick behind Los Angeles Lakers G Kobe Bryant.
Durant paces a team that has two other double digit scorers in G Russell Westbrook and F Jeff Green. Westbrook is coming off of a 30 point night in his most recent NBA betting performance.
The Thunder will be without G James Harden for the third straight game as he nurses a bum ankle.
Oklahoma City's defense ranks ninth in the NBA at 96.6 points per game, but its opposing shooting percentages are off the charts. The Thunder are keeping teams to just 44.1% from the floor and 33.6% from downtown. Both marks are good enough to be in the Top 3 in the league.
However, the defensive standard in the NBA surprisingly belongs to the Charlotte. The Cats are only conceding 93.9 points per game, tops in the league. Since losing at Boston on March 3rd, they've only allowed a svelte 89.3 points per game. To no one's surprise, Charlotte Bobcats is 6-1 SU and 5-2 ATS in that run.
Offensively, G Stephen Jackson has been leading the way, as he has posted four straight 20+ point showings. The team's leading scorer is put up 21.5 points per game this year.
F Gerald Wallace is the squad's second leading scorer at 18.5 points per game, but he is also bringing down 10.4 rebounds per game to average a double-double.
Since being acquired by the Chicago Bulls right at the NBA's trade deadline, F Tyrus Thomas has reinvented himself, scoring 11.4 points and bringing in 7.0 rebounds per game to go with his 25 blocks in 14 appearances.
NBA Insider Betting Tip : The Bobcats are 20-7 ATS in their L/27 NBA betting affairs on zero days of rest.
One glance at this game suggests that the red hot Thunder are the way to go, but desperation and strong play of late, especially at home, makes the Bobcats a very enticing selection.
There's no stopping Durant from getting his points, but containing the rest of the team with a strong lockdown effort will lead Charlotte to victory tonight.
My NBA Prediction: Bobcats by 4
