Who’s Playing
Oklahoma City Thunder @ New Orleans Pelicans
Current Records: Oklahoma City 17-5, New Orleans 5-18
How To Watch
- When: Saturday, December 7, 2024 at 7 p.m. ET
- Where: Smoothie King Center — New Orleans, Louisiana
- TV: Fan Duel SN – Oklahoma
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $3.21
What to Know
The Pelicans will be in front of their home fans on Saturday, but a look at the spread shows they might need that home-court advantage. They will host the Oklahoma City Thunder at 7:00 p.m. ET at Smoothie King Center. Both come into the match bolstered by wins in their previous matches.
The Pelicans are headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They skirted past the Suns 126-124. The victory was a breath of fresh air for New Orleans as it put an end to their nine-game losing streak.
The Pelicans’ success was spearheaded by the efforts of Brandon Ingram, who earned 29 points along with seven rebounds and two steals, and CJ McCollum, who had 25 points in addition to six assists and two steals. That’s the most assists McCollum has posted since back in April.
Meanwhile, you’re bound to get a positive result if you outscore your opponent every quarter, and that’s exactly how it played out for the Thunder on Thursday. Given that consistent dominance, it should come as no surprise that they blew the Raptors out of the water with a 129-92 final score. Oklahoma City has made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won seven contests by 19 points or more this season.
It was another big night for Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who posted 30 points in addition to five assists and two steals. The game was his 12th in a row with at least 30 points. Less helpful for the Thunder was Luguentz Dort’s abysmal 0-6 three-point shooting.
New Orleans’ win ended a three-game drought at home and bumped them up to 5-18. As for Oklahoma City, they are on a roll lately: they’ve won six of their last seven matchups, which provided a nice bump to their 17-5 record this season.
Both pleased both fans and bettors in their last matches by winning and covering the spread. Looking ahead, the Thunder are the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by 8.5 points. This contest will be their 15th straight as the favorites (so far over this stretch they are 7-7 against the spread).
The Pelicans ended up a good deal behind the Thunder in their previous meeting back in November, losing 106-88. Will the Pelicans have more luck at home instead of on the road?
Odds
Oklahoma City is a big 8.5-point favorite against New Orleans, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Thunder as a 7.5-point favorite.
The over/under is 224.5 points.
See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
Oklahoma City has won 9 out of their last 10 games against New Orleans.
- Nov 13, 2024 – Oklahoma City 106 vs. New Orleans 88
- Apr 29, 2024 – Oklahoma City 97 vs. New Orleans 89
- Apr 27, 2024 – Oklahoma City 106 vs. New Orleans 85
- Apr 24, 2024 – Oklahoma City 124 vs. New Orleans 92
- Apr 21, 2024 – Oklahoma City 94 vs. New Orleans 92
- Mar 26, 2024 – Oklahoma City 119 vs. New Orleans 112
- Jan 26, 2024 – Oklahoma City 107 vs. New Orleans 83
- Nov 01, 2023 – New Orleans 110 vs. Oklahoma City 106
- Apr 12, 2023 – Oklahoma City 123 vs. New Orleans 118
- Mar 11, 2023 – Oklahoma City 110 vs. New Orleans 96
