Orlando Magic vs Oklahoma City Thunder Prediction, 12/29/2020 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Orlando Magic vs Oklahoma City Thunder

Date: Tuesday, December 29, 2020

Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, OK

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma

Odds/Point Spread: Orlando (-4)

The Orlando Magic (3-0) head to Chesapeake Energy Arena on Tuesday where they'll take on the Oklahoma City Thunder (1-0). Orlando opens this game as 4-point favorites. The total has been set at 221.5.

The Orlando Magic stepped onto the hardwood against the Washington Wizards and earned the victory with a final of 120-113 in their last game. Orlando walked away from the game having earned a 43.5% FG percentage (37 out of 85) and converted 9 out of their 25 shots from beyond the perimeter. At the charity stripe, the Magic buried 37 of their 38 shots for a percentage of 97.4%. In the matter of grabbing boards, they earned 45 with 11 of them being of the offensive sort. They also dished out 19 dimes in the game while earning 6 steals and 3 blocks. In relation to defense, Orlando allowed the other team to go 48.5% from the floor on 47 of 97 shooting. Washington recorded 27 assists and had 6 steals in this contest. On top of that, the Wizards totaled 47 rebounds (13 offensive, 34 defensive) and had 4 blocks. Washington ended up shooting 84.6% from the charity stripe by knocking down 11 of their 13 tries. They buried 8 of 32 attempts from downtown.

Markelle Fultz is one guy who was a factor in the game. He left the arena with 26 points on 11 out of 21 shooting. He played for 29:03 mins played and pulled down 2 rebounds. Fultz finished the game at 52.4% from the floor and dished out 2 dimes. An additional guy that was a determining factor in the matchup for the Magic was Nikola Vučević. He totaled 8 rebounds and also had 4 assists. He ended up shooting 45.5% from the field in the game via 5-of-11 (15 points). In all, Vučević saw the court for 28:04 min.

Orlando will enter this matchup with a record of 3-0 for the campaign. They are losing possession via turnover 14.0 times per game and as a group are committing 18.0 personal fouls per game. As a unit, Orlando is grabbing 46.7 rebounds per contest and has 67 assists this season, which ranks 14th in basketball in terms of passing the ball. The Magic are connecting on 35.7% on three-point attempts (30 of 84) and 81.4% from the charity stripe. They average 121.0 points per outing (6th in the NBA) on 47.4% from the floor. On the defensive end, the Magic are able to force 16.3 turnovers per game and they draw 24.0 fouls. They relinquish 31.5% on shots from beyond the arc and they rank 17th in basketball in opponents PPG (113.3). The Magic are giving up an opponent shooting percentage of 49.1% (49 of 72) and they concede 44.3 rebounds per contest as a team. They currently rank 25th in the league in giving up assists to the opposition with 80 conceded so far this season.

In their last game, the Oklahoma City Thunder got the victory with a final of 109-107 when they played the Charlotte Hornets. The Thunder were able to snag 45 defensive rebounds and 9 offensive rebounds totaling 54 for the contest. They also blocked 7 shots while getting 10 steals for the matchup. The Hornets were called for 22 fouls in the matchup which got the Thunder to the charity stripe for a total of 24 attempts. They were able to bury 19 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 79.2%. Pertaining to three-point attempts, Oklahoma City knocked down 10 of 36 attempts (27.8%). When this game wrapped up, the Thunder went 40 out of 88 from the field which had them sitting at 45.5%. The Thunder allowed the Hornets to make 37 out of their 93 tries from the floor which had them shooting 39.8% in this game. They finished 40.6% from beyond the perimeter by shooting 13 out of 32 and ended up shooting 20 out of 32 from the charity stripe (62.5%). Regarding cleaning the glass, Oklahoma City allowed Charlotte to snag 47 in all (13 offensive).

Luguentz Dort pitched in for the Thunder for the game. He buried 5 of 12 in the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 41.7%, which gave him 15 points. Dort collected 5 rebounds in his 34:34 mins of time on the court and earned 2 dimes for this contest. One more player who came through for Oklahoma City was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He totaled 24 points in 34:22 minutes played via 8 of 20 shooting in this game. Gilgeous-Alexander finished going 40.0% from the floor while contributing 9 assists and 7 boards.

Oklahoma City has a mark of 1-0 on the year. The Thunder commit 21 fouls every game and they connect on 79.2% from the charity stripe. They are earning an assist 25 times per contest (14th in the league) and they are turning it over 17 times per game. Oklahoma City has scored 109 points this year and they pull down 54 boards per game. As an offensive team, the Thunder are connecting on 45.5% from the floor, which ranks them 19th in basketball. The Thunder on defense are ranked 8th in the NBA in PPG given up with 107. They have conceded 27 dimes and 47 total boards per game, which is ranked 21st and 19th in basketball. The Oklahoma City defense surrenders 40.6% on 3-point attempts (13 of 32) and their opponents are making 62.5% of their shots from the free throw line. They are forcing 13 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 39.8% from the field (1st in the NBA).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Orlando (-4)

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