The Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder will meet Thursday evening in Game 2 of their second-round series in the 2024 NBA Playoffs, with Oklahoma City holding the 1-0 lead after a dominant performance in the opener. The Thunder will look to maintain their edge, while the Mavericks try to achieve a split before the series shifts to Dallas.
Maxi Kleber and Olivier-Maxence Prosper remain out for the Mavericks, while Luka Doncic is probable as he continues to deal with a knee issue. Oklahoma City is clean on the injury front.
The Thunder are 5-point favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook with the total coming in at 218.5. Oklahoma City is -198 on the moneyline while Dallas is +164.
Mavericks vs. Thunder, 9:30 p.m. ET
Pick ATS: Mavericks +5
Game 1 of the first-round series between the Clippers and Mavericks went similar to how Game 1 of this series went for Dallas. However, the Mavericks bounced back in a big way to grab a win on the road. The Thunder are playing with confidence and are healthier than the Clippers, but this is typically where experience plays a factor. Now that Dallas has an idea of what to expect, I think it will be able to make adjustments here.
Oklahoma City is 37-24 ATS after a win while Dallas is 21-13 ATS after a loss. The Thunder are 44-17 straight up following a win while the Mavericks are 21-13 straight up after a loss. I think Dallas’ surge late this season was real and I’ll back this team to cover in Game 2 if not win outright.
Over/Under: Under 218.5
The first game went under this total, largely due to Dallas’ offense dropping off after the third quarter. However, I think the Mavericks know they’ll have to re-discover their defensive form in order to compete in this series. The Thunder have been one of the best offensive teams all season but they did have some down games against the Pelicans relative to Game 1. I think Dallas makes the defensive adjustments to counter Oklahoma City’s offense in Game 2 and that’ll cash the under again.