The top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder are back on their home floor for Game 5 and looking to take the series lead for the first time in their second-round matchup with the Denver Nuggets. The series is tied, 2-2, after OKC pulled out a Game 4 road win on Sunday.
The Nuggets scored just eight points in the first quarter of Sunday afternoon’s Game 4, but they actually held the lead entering the fourth quarter. Shai Gilgeous-Alexadner stepped up late for OKC, and the Thunder outscored the Nuggets by 11 points in the final 12 minutes.
After scoring 42 points and corralling 22 rebounds in Game 1 of this series, Nuggets star Nikola Jokić has been held in check by the Thunder. Jokić has scored 21.3 points per game in the last three games and dished out a total of 15 assists.
Thunder vs. Nuggets: Game 5 info
Time: 9:30 p.m. | Date: Tuesday, May 13
Location: Paycom Center — Oklahoma City
TV channel: TNT | Live stream: Max
Odds (via FanDuel): Thunder -10, O/U 221.5
Thunder vs. Nuggets: Game 5 best bet
I think Nikola Jokić will ultimately start scoring at his typical level again. He’s mostly not making his 3s right now. But he hasn’t topped six assists once in this series. Oklahoma City is determined to take away all of Denver’s easy cuts to the basket, and given how unreliable Denver’s 3-point shooters are, betting on Jokić to rack up assists on 3s seems risky. This line is still treating Jokić like a triple-double machine. He hasn’t been one in this series. The Pick: Jokić Under 8.5 Assists