Jazz vs Thunder Odds, Picks, and Predictions Tonight: Utah Hangs Tight in OKC

The Utah Jazz have covered the NBA odds just twice in their last six games, managing to win only one. Now, they’ll be asked to win in one of the toughest places to play when they travel to Oklahoma City to take on the Thunder.

Will Utah’s injuries continue to hamper its growth, or might a couple of slightly encouraging performances offer a bit of hope here against OKC?

Let's get right into it with our in-depth preview and NBA picks for Jazz vs. Thunder on Wednesday, March 20.

Jazz vs Thunder odds

Jazz vs Thunder predictions

The Utah Jazz continue to produce offensively, ranking seventh in the NBA in scoring output per 100 possessions in March. They’re currently playing without Lauri Markkanen and Jordan Clarkson, and now John Collins is in danger of missing a game after picking up a facial contusion.

Through it all, though, the offense has more or less stayed the course despite a small blip over the last two games, which took place against arguably the best defense in the league in Minnesota. What’s more, the Jazz continue to be dominant on the glass with Walker Kessler taking on more minutes and despite poor marks in general on defense, this team has ranked third in defending the rim in March thanks to the defensive-minded Kessler stepping in for Markkanen.

The Jazz have been torched from beyond the arc, but the good news here is that the Oklahoma City Thunder have actually opted to take most of their shots from the mid-range which is rare for a team that can consider itself an efficient offense.

With that said, it’s hard to argue that the 3-ball hasn’t been the biggest weapon for the Thunder this year on offense considering sit atop the league in shooting accuracy from deep according to Cleaning the Glass, so I’m not quite sure how Utah’s lone strength defensive will help it here. The good news is that the Jazz should have a huge advantage on the glass, so with many missed shots coming from their end of the floor there should be afforded plenty of second chances to score.

Utah’s been shooting the ball incredibly well since the calendar turned compared to what we’ve seen all season long, and even in recent games without Clarkson and Markkanen, that’s remained true. The only way to beat the Thunder this year has been from deep, and I do think Utah is capable of staying in the game from deep especially given the offensive rebounds that should be available.

I see this as too heavy of a line as we speak now.

My best bet: Jazz +15.5 (-108 at DraftKings)

Jazz vs Thunder same-game parlay

Jazz +15.5

Taylor Hendricks Over 6.5 rebounds

Jalen Williams Over 1.5 3s made

+433 at FanDuel

Kessler has had plenty of extra time on the floor to shore up the frontcourt in Markkanen’s stead, but the man who’s really seen the biggest uptick in usage is Taylor Hendricks. The forward has now started nine straight games when healthy and averaged 25.7 minutes and 7.6 rebounds in these games.

Against one of the weaker teams in the league on the glass, and against a strong defense, the opportunities should be there for Hendricks to gobble up seven boards, something that seems incredibly feasible given up until last time out against Minnesota, and not including the game he was injured early, he’d gone for 10 or more boards in his previous three.

Then, I will back a near 45% 3-point shooter to get right in the midst of a rough patch from deep and take Jalen Williams to knock down two or more shots outside. He’s played 35 minutes per game over the Thunder’s last two, and while one was an overtime game he should still be well-positioned to get plenty of shots up. Given taking it inside against Utah is a bad idea at the moment, I suspect he’ll settle for more 3s, a zone that has been great to him.

Learn how to bet a same-game parlay with these helpful tips and strategies.

Jazz vs Thunder spread and Over/Under analysis

I’m going against the grain here on my spread pick, with the line opening up at 13 points and steadily jumping out to 15 and then 15.5 points as the day wore on Wednesday. As you might suspect, 65% of the spread tickets here are on the Thunder over at DraftKings but in an interesting turn, just 64% of the handle is headed towards OKC.

It may be a sign that the public and the pros are in agreement, or more likely it is a sign that the sharp bettors see no angle here with the spread and no value.

On the other hand, the sharps have decided to take a stand with this total with 50% of the handle coming in on the Over despite just 44% of the tickets. The number opened up at 236.5 and was quickly bet all the way down to 231 points early on Wednesday before we saw a recent jump to 231.5 and then 232 points in the mid-afternoon.

Jazz vs Thunder betting trend to know

The Utah Jazz have hit the Team Total Over in 30 of their last 46 games (+11.25 Units / 21% ROI). Find more NBA betting trends for Jazz vs. Thunder.

Jazz vs Thunder game info

Jazz vs Thunder latest injuries

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