The Northwest’s top team, the Oklahoma City Thunder (26-11), travel to the Moda Center to play the division rival Portland Trail Blazers (15-24). The game gets underway at 9:00 pm ET on Sunday, Jan. 10 and will air on FxK and CNW.
The Trail Blazers got blown out by the Warriors 128-108 on Friday. Damian Lillard recorded 40 points and 10 assists, earning his seventh double-double of the year. The Thunder, meanwhile, are coming off a 117-113 win over the Lakers on Friday. Russell Westbrook played well and claimed his 22nd double-double of the season, accumulating 36 points and 12 rebounds.
The physical Thunder offense seems poised to make an impact from the foul line. They rank fifth in the NBA at getting to the stripe (free throw attempt rate of 30.0), while Portland is among the league’s most foul-prone squads (giving up a 28th-ranked free throw attempt rate of 31.0).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Thunder won the first game 106-90. Kevin Durant was a standout player in the game, producing 24 points, six rebounds, four assists, one block, and one three-pointer.
Notes
In its last game, Portland lost by a 20-point margin. Oklahoma City is 9-0 in games decided by a margin of 18 points or more. Portland has a 3-3 record in blowouts.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the Oklahoma City Thunder are an exceptional 16-2. In games where they score fewer than 100 points, the Portland Trail Blazers have an abysmal record of 1-14.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have a 10-9 record when their opponents score 100 points or more. The Portland Trail Blazers have a 14-10 record when they reach the century mark.
The Trail Blazers have a defensive rating of 106.3 (ranked 25th), while the Thunder rank second for their offensive rating of 110.1.
The Oklahoma City Thunder have one of the best field goal percentages this season, ranking third in the league with a FG% of 47.5%. When their opponents record a similar or higher FG%, the Portland Trail Blazers have a subpar 1-13 record.
The Portland Trail Blazers rank higher for their effective field goal percentage (12th) than they do for their field goal percentage (17th). The Oklahoma City Thunder rank third for both their FG% and EFF%.
On average, the Oklahoma City Thunder make 21.5 assists per game and the Portland Trail Blazers make 20.6. Oklahoma City is ranked 15th, while Portland is ranked 21st.
The Portland Trail Blazers average 3.9 blocks per game for a rank of 25th. The Oklahoma City Thunder rank higher (second), earning 6.7 blocks each contest.
The Trail Blazers and the Thunder are well matched when it comes to rebounding. Portland is ranked fourth in offensive rebounding, and Oklahoma City is also ranked fourth in defensive rebounding.
The Portland Trail Blazers make an average of 6.4 steals per game. When the Oklahoma City Thunder allow 6 or more steals, they are a solid 26-10.
