Trail Blazers vs Thunder Prediction, Picks & Odds for Tonight’s NBA Game

The Thunder's elite defense has looked shakier than usual of late, and while a win over the Trail Blazers can be expected, both teams will contribute to the game total Over.

Ed Scimia - Contributor at Covers.com
Ed Scimia • Betting Analyst
Dec 31, 2025 • 12:53 ET • 4 min read

NBA

Match starts: 5 hrs
OKC
100 %
POR
0 %
EXPERT PICK - TOTAL
o232.5 (-110)
Read Analysis
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander OKC Thunder Deni Avdija Portland Trail Blazers NBA
Photo By - Imagn Images. Thunder G Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) guards Trail Blazers F Deni Avdija.

The Oklahoma City Thunder will look to run their latest winning streak to three games as they host the Portland Trail Blazers on New Year’s Eve.

Oklahoma City isn’t exactly struggling, but it hasn’t been as sharp on defense recently, and that’s leading me to take the Over in my Trail Blazers vs. Thunder predictions.

Let’s take a closer look with my free NBA picks for Wednesday, December 31.

Trail Blazers vs Thunder prediction

Trail Blazers vs Thunder best bet: Over 232.5 (-110)

The Oklahoma City Thunder have been the best defensive team in the NBA by a large margin for most of this season, particularly during their 24-1 run to start the year.

But OKC hasn’t looked as sharp on the defensive end in recent weeks, and that’s not just because of their losses to the San Antonio Spurs. It’s also coming off a 140-129 win over the Atlanta Hawks, and has played to totals of 233+ in three of its last four.

Over their last eight games, the Thunder have played to a 110.5 defensive rating. That’s far from bad – it would rank sixth in the NBA – but it’s not the same level of dominance that we’ve come to expect from this group. Still, the offense has remained among the best in the NBA, with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (32.2 points per game) powering Oklahoma City to wins in its last two games.

The Portland Trail Blazers haven’t been among the best offensive teams in the NBA this year, but they’ve found some success against Oklahoma City.

The Blazers were responsible for the Thunder's lone loss suffered in their first 25 games, and have scored 115+ in two of the first three meetings between these teams.

In those three games, Portland and Oklahoma City have combined for 238+ points twice. And with the Thunder trying to figure things out on defense, I expect a similar output tonight.

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Trail Blazers vs Thunder same-game parlay

The Trail Blazers played relatively well against the Thunder this season and could take advantage of Oklahoma City’s recent defensive lapses. Plus, Deni Avdija has gone Over this number in seven of his last eight games. To round out our parlay, let’s throw in a bet on SGA to score Over 30.5 points, something he’s done in two of the first three meetings with Portland this year.

Trail Blazers vs Thunder SGP

  • Over 232.5
  • Trail Blazers +16
  • Deni Avdija Over 38.5 points + rebounds + assists
  • Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Over 30.5 points

Our "from downtown" SGP: Donovan's Double Trouble

Portland center Donovan Clingan has put up double-doubles in four of his last six games overall

Trail Blazers vs Thunder SGP

  • Over 232.5
  • Trail Blazers +16
  • Deni Avdija Over 38.5 points + rebounds + assists
  • Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Over 30.5 points
  • Donovan Clingan double-double

Trail Blazers vs Thunder odds

  • Spread: Trail Blazers +16 (-110) | Thunder -16 (-110)
  • Moneyline: Trail Blazers +750 | Thunder -1200
  • Over/Under: Over 232.5 (-110) | Under 232.5 (-110)

Trail Blazers vs Thunder betting trend to know

The Over is 3-1 in Oklahoma City’s last four games overall. Find more NBA betting trends for Trail Blazers vs. Thunder.

How to watch Trail Blazers vs Thunder

Location Paycom Center, Oklahoma City, OK
Date Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Tip-off 8:00 p.m. ET
TV KUNP, FDSN Oklahoma

Trail Blazers vs Thunder latest injuries

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Ed Scimia - Covers.com
Betting Analyst

Ed Scimia has been writing about the gaming industry for over 15 years. He graduated from Syracuse University with degrees in Magazine Journalism and Political Science in 2003, and has covered major gambling events like the World Series of Poker in his career. Since joining Covers in 2022, Ed has offered his sports betting analysis primarily on MLB, NFL, college football, and college basketball games, but is willing to take on any sport.

His betting strategy focuses more on finding line value based on deviations from the market rather than traditional handicapping, primarily shopping between DraftKings, FanDuel, and Fanatics in his home state of Connecticut, though he’s not afraid to do deep game analysis to find profitable bets at any book.

Outside of gambling, Ed is an avid curler who competes in mixed doubles on the World Curling Tour and runs a popular curling YouTube channel, Chess on Ice. That experience has come in handy during the Olympics, when he has proven to be a successful curling bettor as well. 

Ed's advice to new bettors is to always open multiple sportsbook accounts and check the odds at each before placing any bet. Successful sports betting is about consistently beating the closing line value, which requires finding spots where one book is offering odds far better than the rest of the market and jumping on those opportunities.

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