A week ago, the Cleveland Cavaliers served further notice that they’re legitimate championship contenders by defeating the Oklahoma City Thunder, the best team in the Western Conference, 129-122 on national television.
The two teams will meet again on Thursday, this time at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, which will give the Cavs an opportunity to make another big statement.
This time, however, the Cavs are reportedly listed as three-point underdogs, even though Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein will not play due to a calf strain, per Nick Camino.
The #Cavs are currently listed as a 3-point underdog for tomorrow's showdown with the OKC Thunder.
The two teams played a great game in Cleveland last week, now it's a showdown in OKC.
Isaiah Hartenstein is OUT tomorrow.
(odds via @SuperBookNV)
(H/T @golfodds)— Nick Camino (@NickCaminoWKYC) January 15, 2025
The Thunder are just one game worse than the Cavs at 33-6, and thus this game could determine which team would have home-court advantage in this summer’s NBA Finals should the two teams meet there.
It will be another classic tug of war between the league’s best offensive team in Cleveland, who are first in offensive rating, field-goal percentage and 3-point accuracy, and the league’s best defense in the Thunder, who are first in defensive rating by far.
Last week’s game was played on the Cavs’ terms, as it was a high-scoring game, and if Oklahoma City is to get a win this time, it may have to keep the scores under 110 points and turn it into a grind-it-out affair.
Cleveland, however, is still a very solid defensive squad — they’re 10th in defensive rating, and they’re third in points off turnovers per game.
They recently had their 12-game winning streak broken by the Indiana Pacers on Sunday when they were held to just 93 points, but they got revenge on Indiana on Tuesday with a 127-117 victory.
NEXT: Key Cavs Player Will Be Game-Time Decision For Thunder Game
