NBA Basketball: Oklahoma City Thunder VS Phoenix Suns Pick and Predictions 03/08/2023

Game: 9:00 PM ET,  Wednesday, March 8th, 2023

Venue: Footprint Center, Phoenix, Arizona

TV:  NBA League Pass

Thunder: 31-34, 11th place Western Conference

Suns: 36-29, 4th place Western Conference

BetMGM:  Point Spread: Suns -13.5, O/U 233.5

PointsBet: Point Spread: Suns -13.5, O/U 233.5

Fanduel: Point Spread:  Suns -13.5, O/U 233.5

Thunder: PG Tre Mann, SG Josh Giddey, SF Lugentz Dort, PF Dario Saric, C Jaylin Williams.

Suns: PG Chris Paul, SG Devin Booker, SF Josh Okogie, PF Kevin Durant, C Deandre Ayton

A Western Conference mismatch.  The 11th place team will face off with the 4th place team… but it is not as close as that even sounds.  The OKC Thunder have a young team with one of the best backcourts in all of the NBA… In fact all of their 31 wins this season can be attributed to PG Shai Gilgeous Alexander or SG Josh Giddey (who is really a PG) stuffing the stat sheet across the board… sometimes individually and sometimes in unison… If this team gets a few more players… they will be the dominant backcourt in all of the NBA and ride that all the way to contention.  BUT Shai Gilgeous Alexander is being listed as OUT this game because of an abdomen injury… That may be something he can play through (he did last night on the way to big stats and a shocking win)... BUt he Thunder have reached the point of the season where wins won’t be helpful… and they will look for reasons to hold out practically every productive player.  They are not yet a playoff team and at this point would rather get draft pick positioning over the occasional shocking win. The phoenix Suns are an unstoppable train… You can’t stop them, I can’t stop them.  They gave up a very good player in SF Mikal Bridges plus other pieces and picks to get SF Kevin Durant… but they did not sacrifice the core… the result is the team everyone will lose sleep over as the postseason approaches.  The great betting opportunity here is found in the GIANT point spread.

The OKC Thunder have won 4 of their last 10 games, but are on a 3-game winning streak.  The stretch of losses coincided with a long injury absence for Shai Gilgeous Alexander. They have gone 4-4-2 ATS during that stretch.  They won their last game against the defending Champs.. The Golden State Warriors 137-128. In that win they got 33 points & 6 assists from PG Shai Gilgeous Alexander, 18 points & 8 rebounds from SF Luguentz Dort, and an amazing triple double of 17 points, 11 rebounds and 17 ASSISTS from SG Josh Giddey.

The Phoenix Suns don’t lose anymore.  They have won 7 of their last 109 games but are 3-0 since the addition of SF Kevin Durant.  If Kevin gets Chris Paull a championship ring this season?... He will have performed an NBA miracle.  In their last game they beat the Dallas Mavericks (yes, where Kyrie plays) 130-126.  In the win they got 37 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 assists from SF Kevin Durant, 36 points 5 rebounds, and 10 assists from SG Devin Booker (who has been given new life), and 9 points & 16 rebounds from C Deandre Ayton,  They look unstoppable and they just might be.

Doc’s Sports is 31-18 in NBA picks the last 60 days for a profit of $11,000!! You should be following a handicapper all season long! Get Doc’s Sports picks right now at the Shop Picks page, where you can find all of the Best Bets from our champion sports handicappers. BigAl.com can help you with all your bets from NCAAF, NFL, MLB, NHL… get positive value from all your bets! Remember: winning a bet is way more fun than making a bet!

Our prediction for Wednesday, March 8th is…. Suns 120 - Thunder 113

Bet on the Thunder!  Yes, the Suns look unstoppable.  They look great.  However when a basketball spread is 13.5 points!!!!  You have to bet the Thunder.  Shai might play (he did last night)... Josh Giddey may get another triple double (he did last night)... But most importantly the Suns have no care whether they win by 14 or 10 points as long as they get the win.  That is why every gambler occasionally falls victim to “garbage time”.. Bet a big spread but when the game is out of reach late?

Don't miss our champion handicappers' Free NBA Picks and Premium Selections every day here at Bigal.com. Just click on Shop Picks for our Thunder/Suns preview, be sure to bookmark Bigal.com for our daily Game Previews and Predictions.  Get help with all your college football picks, National Football league, NCAA brackets, or any prop bets on your season schedule. 

The Thunder are 18-7 ATS as a road underdog this season.

The Thunder are 6-0 ATS as an underdog of 10 points or more this season.

The Suns are 15-10 ATS as a home favorite this season.

Thunder: PG Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.  Shai is a legit top-ten player in this league.  He is poised for a big game every time he steps on the court. He dominates and is capable of winning.  And the Clippers could have kept him and been better off with their picks had they not traded for Paul George. Does Shai have enough in him to beat the Suns… nop he doesn’t play every position.. However he can keep them close… Too bad he is listed as OUT.

Suns: SF Kevin Durant.  Kevin is the greatest scorer in the NBA… The reason he is the greatest and unlike the others on the list is he doesn’t have to dominate the ball. His addition to the Suns has sent shockwaves throughout the league.  Some of the other teams did everything right this season…. BUT never expected to go against SF Kevin Durant WITH a quality team around him.

Thunder: Mark “The funky bunch” Daigenault

Suns: Monty “Mr Class” Williams