Boston Celtics vs Oklahoma City Thunder Prediction, Preview and Odds - 01/03/2023

Game Time: 8:00 pm ET, Tuesday, January 3, 2023

Venue:  Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK

Where to Watch:  BSOK

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Celtics -8.5, Thunder +8.5; Over/Under:  235.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Celtics -8.5, Thunder +8.5; Over/Under:  235.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Celtics -8.5, Thunder +8.5; Over/Under:  235.5 points

 

Boston Celtics:  26-11 (1st place, Atlantic Division)

Oklahoma City Thunder:  15-21 (5th place, Northwest Division)

 

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Boston Celtics:  5-5 last 10

Oklahoma City Thunder:  4-6 last 10

 

The Celtics are coming into this game with a 26-11 record overall and they are 11-6 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off of a loss against the Denver Nuggets in their last game. Jaylen Brown led the team in points in that game with 30 while Jayson Tatum was next on the team with 25 points. Marcus Smart led the team in assists in that game with 7 while Jaylen Brown led the team in rebounds with 8. They were 46% from the field, 27.3% from 3-point range, and 81.5% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 118.6 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 112.4 PPG against them. The Celtics have an ATS record of 21-16 this season and their O/U record is 18-17-2.

 

 

 

The Thunder are coming into this game with a 15-21 record overall and they are 10-9 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game on a 2 game losing streak with losses coming against the Charlotte Hornets and the Philadelphia 76ers in their last game. Josh Giddey led the team in points in that game with 20 while Jalen Williams was next on the team with 17 points. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the team in assists in that game with 5 while Josh Giddey and Kenrich Williams each led the team in rebounds with 9. They were 38% from the field, 33.3% from 3-point range, and 63.6% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 115.2 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 116.8 PPG against them. The Thunder have an ATS record of 21-15 this season and their O/U record is 20-16.

The current betting odds have the Thunder listed as an 8.5 point underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Thunder haven't been great in their last few games with 2 losses in a row now but they have still been very good in their games lately winning a lot of games at home. They just lost their last home game but will be looking to bounce back with a much better performance here. The Celtics are one of the best teams in the NBA right now and have been having a great season overall, but they have definitely had some slip ups in their road games and that is where they have been most vulnerable. The Thunder are a very good home team with a 15-19 record overall but 10 of those wins coming at home this year, and they also have one of the best ATS records in the league going back to last season. The Celtics just lost their last road game too which was by double digits in Denver and the Thunder will definitely get up for this game against the team with the best record in the NBA right now. The best way to place a bet here is on the Thunder to cover the spread in this game.

 

Celtics Thunder Prediction:  Our NBA Pick for Tuesday, January 3, 2023 (8:00 pm ET start time) is Celtics 118 Thunder 114.

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Boston Celtics: 14-7 ATS off a road loss by 10 points or more. 28-13 ATS after failing to cover the spread in 2 or more consecutive games. 16-6 OVER off a road loss by 10 points or more.

Oklahoma City Thunder: 12-22 ATS as a home underdog of 6.5 to 12 points. 6-12 ATS in a home game where the total is greater than or equal to 230. 13-4 OVER in a home game where the total is greater than or equal to 230.

 

 

Boston Celtics:  B. Griffin (PF) Ques Tues - Illness. D. Gallinari (SF) out for season - Knee.

Oklahoma City Thunder:  A. Pokusevski (PF) Early Feb - Leg. O. Dieng (PF) Late Jan - Wrist. J. Robinson-Earl (PF) Out indefinitely - Ankle. C. Holmgren (C) out for season - Foot.

 

 

 

“There was no communication. They spent all that time trying to fix it but when we came back it still looked like it wasn’t even level, in my opinion. So we just wasted all that time.” - Jaylen Brown after their loss against the Nuggets in their game on Sunday.

 

 

“They had 66 points in the paint tonight. A lot of why we’ve had some success lately, defensively especially, has been because of our ability to protect the paint. And we certainly didn’t do that well enough.” - Mark Daigneault after his team’s loss against the Hornets in their game on Thursday.

 

 

 

PG Marcus Smart

SG Derrick White

SF Jaylen Brown

PF Jayson Tatum

C Al Horford

 

PG Shai Gilgeous-Alexander 

SG Josh Giddey

SF Luguentz Dort 

PF Jalen Williams

C Jaylin Williams

 

 

PPG: J. Tatum (30.9)

APG: M. Smart (7.4)

Reb/G: J. Tatum (8.1)

 

PPG: S. Gilgeous-Alexander (30.8)

APG: S. Gilgeous-Alexander (5.8)

Reb/G: J. Giddey (8.2)

 

Coaches:

Boston Celtics: Joe Mazzulla (1st season)

Oklahoma City Thunder: Mark Daigneault (3rd season)