To put a bow on an awesome day of NBA basketball, the Oklahoma City Thunder are set to face off with the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Thunder continue to be without Chet Holmgren, Nikola Topic, and Jaylin Williams, with Alex Caruso also ruled out for this game due to a hip injury. This will put even more responsibility on the plate of Jalen Williams and the rest of the Thunder’s active players. For the Lakers, Christian Wood and Jarred Vanderbilt remain out while Jaxson Hayes carries a doubtful label due to an ankle injury. Anthony Davis and Dalton Knecht are each listed as probable.
It should be noted that Jalen Williams suffered some sort of eye injury in Wednesday’s victory over the Warriors. However, he is not listed on the injury report and there are not expected to be limitations tonight.
The Thunder enter this game as 3-point favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Lakers are +136 underdogs on the moneyline with the game total set at 230 points.
Jalen Williams Prop Bets on DraftKings Sportsbook
DraftKings Sportsbook has set Jalen Williams’ prop lines for points (21.5), rebounds (5.5), assists (4.5), made three-pointers (2.5), and combined points, rebounds, and assists (32.5).
So far this season, Williams has averaged 21.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 2.2 steals per game. He also is shooting 39.8% on three-point attempts while launching a career-high 5.2 long-range shots per game.
The Lakers have struggled defensively this season. They rank 24th in opponent points per game, allowing 116.6 PPG. They also rank 27th in opponent field goal percentage, 21st in opponent three-point percentage, and are allowing the most points in transition of any team in the NBA.
This transition weakness is something that the Thunder, and more specifically Williams, are built to exploit. Williams is tied for ninth in the NBA in transition points per game at 5.9 and is producing 1.31 points per possession in transition. The Santa Clara product is recording an impressive 66.9% effective field goal percentage in these transition opportunities.
Overall, Williams has gone over 21.5 points in exactly 10 of his 18 games. While this is the first matchup between the Lakers and Thunder this year, Williams recorded over 21.5 points in the past two matchups with Los Angeles and four of the last six overall games.
Williams has taken a further step forward as a scorer following the injury to Chet Holmgren. The Thunder have been forced to make up the 16.4 points per game Holmgren was averaging, so Williams has stepped up in the pecking order. In the eight games that Holmgren has missed, Williams has averaged 24.8 points per game.
This will be a high-intensity Western Conference matchup with much at stake in the standings and NBA Cup race. Jalen Williams has already played in plenty of big-ticket matchups in his young career and will have no problem being prepared for the challenge tonight. While I expect a big night overall from Williams and see some value on his three-point prop and assists as well, going over 21.5 points at -125 odds on DraftKings Sportsbook is my favorite pick on the slate.
The Pick: Over 21.5 Points
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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook, lines and odds subject to change.
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