Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Oklahoma City Thunder turned in an impressive defensive performance on Monday, holding the Dallas Mavericks to 94 points in a seven-point win.
Unfortunately, OKC didn’t cover for the third time in four games for bettors — despite a 4-0 record straight up.
The Thunder will aim to turn that around on the second night of a back-to-back on Tuesday against the Sacramento Kings.
The Kings are just 1-2 this season, losing to a shorthanded Los Angeles Lakers team on Sunday. Domantas Sabonis is back after missing the opener for the Kings, but oddsmakers have them set as underdogs at home against the defending champs.
Here’s a look at the odds, my favorite prop bet and more for Tuesday’s Western Conference battle.
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.
Spread
Moneyline
Total
Kings Injury Report
Thunder Injury Report
Kings Best NBA Prop Bet
Earlier today, I shared in my NBA Best Bets column – Peter’s Points – why LaVine is worth a look after a strong first three games of the 2025-26 campaign:
Betting a scoring OVER against the Oklahoma City Thunder isn’t for the faint of heart, but I believe Sacramento Kings guard Zach LaVine is undervalued on Tuesday night.
OKC is playing the second night of a back-to-back, and Lu Dort and Cason Wallace have both popped up on the injury report this season and could end up missing this game. Plus, Alex Caruso has been in concussion protocol for the Thunder.
LaVine has 30 or more points in three games in a row, taking 24, 18 and 24 shots in the process. He’s shooting 35.7 percent from 3 on over nine attempts per game, and he’s been able to easily clear this number despite only getting to the line for 14 free-throw attempts in three games.
Last season, LaVine averaged 22.4 points per game in 32 games with the Kings on 16.0 shots per night. He’s seen his shots per game rise by six a night early in the 2025-26 season, making him a great buy-low candidate – even against a tough defense.
This is just the second home game of the season for the Thunder, who are 1-3 against the spread and have struggled to cover the number on the road, failing to do so against Dallas and Indiana.
Still, I’m buying OKC at home against a Kings team that lost to the Luka Doncic-less Lakers over the weekend. The Kings’ lone win is by one point against the Utah Jazz, and they rank in the bottom half of the league in offensive and net rating.
Meanwhile, OKC is right back to having the No. 1 defense in the NBA, allowing 100 and 94 points over its last two games.
This is the second night of a back-to-back – so bettors may want to wait for OKC’s injury report – but I lean with the Thunder covering in this matchup.
The Kings are 0-3 against the spread, and if they couldn’t beat a banged-up Lakers team (at home), I can’t back them to keep pace with the defending champs in one of the toughest places to play in the NBA.
Pick: Thunder -10.5 (-110 at DraftKings)
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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Find Peter Dewey’s NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on BetStamp here.
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