The NBA brings a small slate on Saturday with just five games on the schedule, but there are still a couple of quality matchups with some betting interest. At 7:30 p.m. EST, the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder head to Atlanta for a matchup against the Hawks. This showcase of star guards sees Trae Young and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander go head-to-head, but some injury statuses may make up the difference between these two sides.
Here’s a Thunder vs. Hawks prediction and pick on DraftKings Sportsbook for Saturday’s matchup.
Thunder vs. Hawks prediction, preview
Oklahoma City Thunder
The 2025 NBA Champions are 2-0 to start the season after pair of overtime thrillers. After downing the Rockets and Pacers, the Thunder are off to a strong start despite the close calls as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dominates. The reigning MVP posted 35 points in his first game before a career-high 55-point explosion in his last outing, so it almost doesn’t even matter that All-Star Jalen Williams remains sidelined due to recovery from a wrist surgery. Tonight, Isaiah Joe (knee) and Alex Caruso (concussion) won’t play. The Thunder will be rather shorthanded, but the duo of Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren are more than enough to keep things competitive. Oklahoma City will surely hone in on its defensive identity while letting the stars go to work and drive the offense here. Watch for SGA to carry a massive offensive workload, but he does face a tough test in a defensive star on the other side.
Atlanta Hawks
As for the Hawks, they’ve begun the campaign 1-1 with a blowout loss to the Raptors before taking down a talented Magic squad 111-107 last night. On the second leg of a back-to-back, Atlanta faces an uphill battle already against a top team here. Thankfully the Hawks play at home, but the injury report doesn’t bode particularly well in this contest. Jalen Johnson (ankle) and Kristaps Porzingis (illness) are both questionable to play tonight, while former No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher (ankle) has already been ruled out as well. Those are three very important names who essentially round out the entire starting frontcourt and three of the likely top-five scorers on the team this year. If either of Johnson or Porzingis do miss this game, the Hawks lack a significant rebounder and scorer that may prove hard to replace. It’ll likely be up to Trae Young and Dyson Daniels to carry the load with Onyeka Okongwu and Nickeil Alexander-Walker likely entering the starting lineup if those aforementioned names both miss due to injury.
Thunder vs. Hawks pick, best bet
On DraftKings Sportsbook, the Thunder enter as -8.5 favorites with -310 odds to win on the Moneyline. The Hawks come in at +250 underdogs to win outright with a game total of 237.5 points.
This game really comes down to the injury report. Johnson is the Hawks’ second-best player, a reliable scorer and one of the best rebounding forwards in the entire NBA, so his absence would be a massive one. However, if Porzingis misses this game as well, Okongwu will almost certainly start while the team makes some pretty significant changes to the rotation in the frontcourt. While Young is practically an offense in himself, a lack of talent around him may prove a significant challenge against the defending champions. Even if the Thunder are a bit shorthanded themselves, they’ll have the top player in this contest and the frontcourt pairing of Holmgren and Isaiah Hartenstein could outright dominate on the glass. The matchups of Dyson Daniels on Gilgeous-Alexander and Lugentz Dort on Young will prove interesting, but Atlanta just may not have enough to compete.
