Thunder vs Jazz Pick, Preview & Betting Odds For Thursday, February 23rd

Check out our free Thunder vs Jazz pick and preview for this NBA game in Salt Lake City. See who we like to win and cover the spread in this NBA matchup.

Thunder vs Jazz NBA Pick & Preview

Sport: NBA
Teams: Oklahoma City Thunder at Utah Jazz
Where: Salt Lake City at Vivint Smart Home Arena
Date: Thursday, February 23rd
Betting Odds UTA -2, OKC +106 | UTA -127 O/U 240.0

The Thunder come into today’s matchup with an overall record of 28-29. So far, the team has gone 36-21-0 against the spread. Across the team’s previous 3 games, they have gone 2-1 straight-up and 2-1 vs the spread.

The Thunder will look to keep things rolling, as they previously beat the Rockets by a score of 133-96. Heading into the game, they were 9 point favorites against the spread, giving them an ATS win. Oklahoma City was able to take care of business in the second half of this game, as they didn’t allow the Rockets to cut into their 22 point halftime lead. Leading the team in scoring was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, as he contributed 29 points while hitting 50.0% of his shots.

So far, the Jazz have put together an overall record of 29-31, while going 32-26-2 vs the spread. Across the team’s previous 3 games, they have gone 1-2 straight-up and 2-1 vs the spread.

The Jazz will be looking to bounce back from a 117-111 loss to the Grizzlies. In terms of betting, Utah entered as 11 point underdogs, giving them an ATS win. In the loss, Utah got off to a slow start, trailing by 16 points going into halftime. In the loss, Kelly Olynyk led the team in scoring with 28 points on a field goal percentage of 56.2%.

Head To Head Recap & Stats

Last season, the Jazz finished with the leg up in their head-to-head games vs Oklahoma City, going 4-0. When they played the Thunder at home, they posted a mark of 2-0. Last year, the Thunder saw a drop in overall scoring when playing the Jazz, averaging 98.5 points per game. While the Thunder struggled on offense in the series, the Jazz maintained their usual level of scoring at 117.5 vs Oklahoma City. The Jazz have had the better record vs the spread over the last 5 games, going 3-2. The team’s average scoring margin in these contests sits at 18 points per game. Oklahoma City and Utah averaged a combined 212 points per game in these games, leading to an over-under mark of 2-3.

Odds & Free Betting Analysis For This NBA Game

The Oklahoma City offense will take the floor in today’s game with the league’s 3rd ranked offense at 117.9 points per game. Coming into today’s game, the Thunder will be looking to improve their 3-point shooting numbers, as they are averaging just 12.2 made 3’s per game. Although Oklahoma City has struggled with their outside shot, they have done a good job taking care of the ball, averaging just 13.0 turnovers per game.

Defensively, Oklahoma City has had its problems giving up an average of 111.83 points per game (15th).

Point-Guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander currently leads the Thunder at 30.8 points per game. For the season, he is 12th in the NBA in usage rate and has taken 21.7% of the team’s field goal attempts. In addition to his scoring, Gilgeous-Alexander is averaging 4.7 boards and 5.7 assists per contest. In today’s game, he is facing off against the NBA’s 25th ranked defense at defending point-guards. Josh Giddey enters the game sitting second on the team in scoring. Through 52 games, he is averaging 16.3 and is 99th in the league in player efficiency rating.

Utah will look to continue with their strong offensive play, as they are averaging 117.6 points per game (5th). When looking at the team’s pace of play, the Jazz are currently below the league average in possessions per game, averaging just 99.9 per contest. Even though the team has preferred to play at a slower pace, their effective field goal percentage of 55.4% has helped them with their overall scoring numbers.

On the defensive end of the floor, the Jazz are giving up an average of 107.57 points per game, good for 10th in the NBA.

On offense, Lauri Markkanen leads the Jazz in scoring at 24.9 points per game, placing him 21st in the NBA. Overall, Markkanen has hit 51.2% of his shots while accounting for 18.4% of the team’s looks from the field. In today’s game, he will be working against a defensive unit that is 14th in points allowed to power-fowards. At 21.0 points per game, Jordan Clarkson is the 2nd leading scorer for the Jazz. For the season, he is 132nd in the league in player efficiency rating, while posting a field goal percentage of 44.6%.