The Oklahoma City Thunder have the best record in the Western Conference this season and they are sitting with a big lead for that best record. The Thunder have been on fire and seem to be getting better as the year moves on, but as impressive as they have been winning game, it's their cover rate that has sports bettors rolling with the Thunder.
With their win over the third best team in the NBA, the Boston Celtics on Sunday, OKC has now won 15 games in a row. That is a head turning streak as it is, but when you have a team with an impressive 30-5 record usually the sports books can make some good money with the public backing them against inflated lines. That has not been the case for the Thunder as they have crushed the books during this stretch.
Oklahoma City has been favored in every game during this 15 game win streak, but the books have not pushed the line to a point where they have been able to get the underdog to cover. OKC is a mind boggling 13-1-1 against the spread during the streak. This team is not just winning games, they are crushing the spread.
The question for us is can the streak continue? Offense usually shines during these streaks and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is the leading offensive force for the Thunder. He led the Thunder in points, rebounds, assists and steals against Boston and recorded his 20th 30-plus-point game. He ranks 3rd in the league in points per game on the season and inside the top 20 in assists.
But as much as the offense is impressive, it's been the defense that has led this money train. Against Boston the Thunder's defense was on full display holding the best three point shooting team to just 9 of 46 from deep. That sort of defensive prowess should give bettors confidence that the cover machine will continue. In order to beat the spread other teams will almost certainly have to get hot from the outside, or have the books over adjust to defeat this hot streak.
The Thunder have a tough road stretch ahead where they take on Cleveland, New York, Washington and Philly, only to return home and have to play the best team in the league Cleveland again. Continuing their winning ways will be tough but if they lose a few of these road games we might not see the adjustment the books will need and this OKC cash cow will keep producing for bettors all month.