The Milwaukee Bucks did it, they have officially gotten off to the best start in franchise history, winning their eight straight game to open the season with their win over the Minnesota Timberwolves Friday night. The Bucks are the lone remaining undefeated team in the NBA and look to continue that fact Saturday night at home against the Oklahoma City Thunder who come into this game 4-4.
Milwaukee Bucks vs Oklahoma City Thunder: Injury report
The Milwaukee Bucks will still be without Khris Middleton, Pat Connaughton and Joe Ingles. Giannis Antetokounmpo was reportedly dealing with some knee soreness ahead of the Timberwolves game but obviously felt well enough to drop a triple double on Minnesota.
The main injury to the Oklahoma City Thunder is rookie Chet Holmgren, who is out for the season with a foot injury.
Milwaukee Bucks vs Oklahoma City Thunder: Betting
The Milwaukee Bucks are going into this game at Fiserv Forum as 7.5 point favorites according to FanDuel Sportsbook. The money line is Milwaukee Bucks -310, Oklahoma City Thunder +250. The over under for this game is set at 221.5.
Milwaukee Bucks vs Oklahoma City Thunder: How to watch
The game will be on Bally Sports Wisconsin at 7 PM CT, or you could be at Fiserv Forum.
Milwaukee Bucks vs Oklahoma City Thunder: How to stream
You can get a free trial on Bally Sports + if you’re interested in streaming the game or NBA League Pass if you’re out of the market.
Milwaukee Bucks vs Oklahoma City Thunder: Predictions
The Oklahoma City Thunder are led by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander who leads the team in points, assists and steals. SGA is averaging 32.3 points, 6.3 assists and 2.4 steals, so the Milwaukee Bucks guards will certainly have their hands full with him.
Outside of SGA the team is a bit underwhelming despite posting all four of their wins consecutively after starting the season 0-3, the Thunder don’t have another player averaging over 15 points per game. The Thunder do have some nice young pieces that are fun to watch in Josh Giddey and Luguentz Dort, but they may not be ready to go toe to toe with the likes of Jrue Holiday and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Thunder come in as the 20th highest scoring team in the NBA, the Milwaukee Bucks at 15th, perhaps a bit skewed by the 90 points scored on opening night against the 76ers. However, the rebounding disparity is a bit larger. The Milwaukee Bucks are first in the NBA in rebounding at 51.4 per game, the Thunder are 9th at 45.6 per game.
The Bucks have gotten off to a slower than expected start to the season behind the 3-point line, it has been noted several times that the three players the Bucks are missing will aid in that area, but even still the Bucks hold an advantage over the Thunder. The Bucks 3-point percentage thus far is 34.0 percent, the Thunder are coming in making just 28.6 percent of their long range looks.
That said, I believe the Bucks will roll to a 9-0 start to the season, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is a fantastic young player and a budding star, and he may have a great game, but the rest of the Thunder roster is not equipped to deal with the size, strength and depth of the Milwaukee Bucks roster.
Final Prediction: Milwaukee Bucks 115, Oklahoma City Thunder 101
Tune in tonight to see if the Milwaukee Bucks extend their franchise best start.
Betting odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.