The Oklahoma City Thunder will meet the Dallas Mavericks in the second round of the 2024 NBA Playoffs in the Western Conference. This matchup features two teams looking to find their identity and become regular contenders in a loaded conference, and a win in this series will go a long way towards establishing that standard. The Thunder enter the second round after sweeping the Pelicans, while the Mavericks took down the Clippers in six games to finally get past their recent postseason rivals. Oklahoma City won the season series between these teams 3-1.
Here we’ll take a look at the best series props for this matchup with odds courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
Thunder vs. Mavericks series props
Over 5.5 games in series (-180)
I don’t believe either team will have an advantage significant enough to make this a quick series. The Thunder dominated the regular season and were more consistent, but the Mavericks have really found their groove over the last month and a half. Dallas ripped off 16 wins in its final 20 games and improved substantially defensively. Even though experience tends to win out in the playoffs, this season has been a bit different. I think the Thunder are deep enough to take this series and the Mavericks are on a roll. Look for this series to go the distance.
Thunder to win Game 1/Thunder to win series (+145)
Homecourt advantage has to count for something in any series, and I think that’ll be a factor in the Thunder eventually advancing. Oklahoma City comes into this matchup with much more rest and should be able to set the tone right away. I think the Mavericks do bounce back and find their footing but Oklahoma City eventually closes things out on its home floor in Game 7. There’s a lot of value here if you believe the Thunder will win the series, since they are going to be decent favorites to take Game 1.
Exact series outcome (Winner of each game): OKC G1/DAL G2/DAL G2/OKC G4/OKC G5/DAL G6/OKC G7 (+5000)
Let’s add a longshot series prop in here for fun. I do think every great playoff team has to win on the road at some point, which both the Thunder and Mavericks were able to do in the first round. I think Dallas gets Game 2 after coming out sluggish in Game 1, which puts pressure on the Thunder to eventually respond. They’ll do so in Game 4 to make it a best-of-3 series, and then I believe the home team takes every subsequent game.
