Brooklyn Nets vs Oklahoma City Thunder Prediction & Betting Tips - NBA

Prediction published on 12/01/2022, 20:06  by Joseph King | Modified on 13/01/2022 at 02:07 in NBA Predictions

The Brooklyn Nets take on the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn for some NBA action on Thursday. The second place Nets are coming off a big 138-112 win against the first place Bulls and now trail Chicago by 1.5 games in the Eastern conference. It was an important away win that should give the team a big confidence boost because they had previously struggled against elite teams this season. They’ll take on one of the worst teams in the league in the Thunder, whose 13-27 record sees them second to last in the Western conference and gives them the fourth worst record in the NBA. OKC are now on a five game losing streak and have only won two of their last 10 games. 

The Nets received a huge boost with the return of one of the best players in the NBA as Kyrie Irving was cleared to play in away games for the team. The mercurial point guard, who has yet to receive the COVID vaccine, had missed the majority of the season due to New York’s vaccine mandate which prohibited the seven-time all-star from playing in home games. The Nets organization previously decided that he wouldn’t be a part of the team if he couldn’t compete in both home and away matches but recently had a change of heart. Irving is still unavailable for home games so will miss this matchup but his return to the team should be a massive lift to morale. The Thunder on the other hand have really struggled this season, especially on the road where they have a record of 5-14. Despite a few promising young pieces, most notably Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Lou Dort, this is a team with their eyes on the next few years as they currently sport the league’s youngest roster.