The 2024 NBA Playoffs will continue on Monday night, and there is a big game set to take place in Dallas. The Mavericks are looking to take a 3-1 series lead over the Oklahoma City Thunder in what has been a competitive series.
Oklahoma City is the number one seed in the Western Conference, but they can’t afford to fall down 3-1 in this series with a loss. The Thunder swept the New Orleans Pelicans in Round 1, but things have been tougher in this series.
Dallas comes into this game with a ton of momentum as they have now won two straight games over the Thunder. The Mavericks were able to dispatch the Los Angeles Clippers in the First Round, and they did it in impressive fashion.
Dallas is coming into this game as a 1.5-point betting favorite, and the over/under line is set at 214.5 points.
Thunder Need to Score
Oklahoma City managed to score just 101 points in the Game 3 loss, and that’s just not how this team has been playing this season. The Thunder are a team that wants to play fast, but that hasn’t been the case so far in this series.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 31 points in the loss on Saturday, but he didn’t get a ton of help from his teammates. Oklahoma City has the ability to shoot the ball well, but that hasn’t happened much in this series.
The Thunder appear to have their defense figured out in this series, but at some point they need to break through and start scoring points.
Defense Leading Dallas Run
The Dallas Mavericks have become a much better defensive team this season, and it has been their defense that is setting the tone. Dallas continues to protect the rim extremely well, and they aren’t letting the Thunder get easy buckets.
The Mavericks have a pair of superstars leading the way for this team, and that makes them a tough team to stop. Luka Doncic is averaging 27.7 points per game during the playoffs, and he sets the tone on offense.
This has also been a great series for Kyrie Irving as he is averaging more than 23 points per game as well. Dallas wants to establish their defense early in this game, but their offense has been great as well.
Mavericks Keep Momentum Going
The Oklahoma City Thunder are going to be playing extremely hard in this game as they know that they can’t afford to lose three straight games. Oklahoma City just hasn’t been able to find a ton of offense in this series, and that’s going to haunt them again in this matchup.
The Mavericks don’t want to give home court advantage back to the Thunder, and this team has been making some big plays of late. Luka Doncic is proving that he is one of the best players in the world, and he will have another big performance in this game.
Bet the Dallas Mavericks at -1.5 in Game 4 as they are going to roll to another win on their home floor to take a 3-1 series lead.
