Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Denver Nuggets Game 6 Prediction, Odds
Denver’s put up a great fight against the top-seed Thunder, but another fourth-quarter comeback has put OKC back in the driver’s seat. Game 5 saw the Thunder outscore the Nuggets 34-19 in the final 12 minutes and more importantly overcome a massive Nikola Jokic performance. The Nuggets superstar finished with 44 points and 15 rebounds in the Game 5 loss while draining improbable shots until the buzzer.
Now on the brink of elimination, Denver is a +155 underdog to force a Game 7. NBA oddsmakers have OKC as a 4.5-point road favourite in Game 6, with the over-under at 214.5 on the NBA odds.
Thunder vs. Nuggets Playoff Betting Odds
Despite back-to-back losses in the series, Denver remains covering the spread. The Nuggets are 3-0 ATS in their last three showings, and the under is also a perfect 3-0 in that span. The under has hit in six of the last seven Thunder–Nuggets contests played in Denver, and is 2-0 this series. Game 4 in Denver saw these teams combine for 179 points, which was nearly 50 points under the listed total. The over-unders in this series were hovering around 230 points but have dropped to the 215 range since this recent scoring dip.
OKC is currently the favourite to win the championship this season at -135 odds. Canadian Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the favourite to win NBA Finals MVP at -125 odds. Denver is +800 to come back and win this series, and +3000 to win it all.
Oklahoma City Thunder
OKC got some clutch shooting from their stars down the stretch in Game 5. Both Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jalen Williams seized the big moment with threes in the final two minutes that gave the Thunder a lead they wouldn’t give up. Gilgeous-Alexander was especially impressive throughout the win, finishing with a team-high 31 points on 12 of 23 shooting. Game 5 was arguably the biggest test for this Thunder regime so far and it was their superstar Canadian guard delivering.
OKC still has to find a way to slow down Jokic, which falls on the likes of Chet Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein. The Thunder still managed to escape with a comeback win in Game 5, but the reality is the only way OKC blows this series is if they continue to allow Jokic to take over.
Denver Nuggets
If Denver held on for another 90 seconds in Game 5, we’d be talking about an all-time playoff performance from Nikola Jokic. It looked like the Nuggets were going to get carried to a massive Game 5 win, but Jokic’s improbable three with 100 seconds to go would be the team’s second-last basket — putting the nail in the coffin in what ended up being a big Denver collapse. Jokic finished with 44 points on 17 of 25 shooting, while also grabbing a game-high 15 rebounds in Game 5. Jamal Murray added 28 points for Denver, and after these two no Nuggets player had over 13 points.
Denver is reliant on their starting five but at some point they need an extra offensive push from their bench. Russell Westbrook is the clear candidate to do so but again finished with a poor shooting night in Game 5, going one for seven from the field. Westbrook’s four points off the bench still lead the group, as the bench combined for 10 points in Game 5. Long story short, Jokic needs help.
OKC
DEN