Preview: Mavericks Look To Bounce Back Against West's Best OKC Thunder

The Dallas Mavericks are looking to rebound from a controversial loss to the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday night. Their chance for it? A matchup against the West's best Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder are playing on the second night of a back-to-back after crushing the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday night. This will be a difficult one for the Mavericks to avoid a fourth straight loss.

Dallas got screwed on a missed goaltending call on Wednesday night against the Pelicans that could've given them the win. Instead, they fell to 7th in the Western Conference as they await Luka Doncic's return. They've beaten the Thunder once this season without Doncic, but this team isn't playing nearly as well as it was then. The Mavs have won just three of their last 12 games, dropping games to teams like the Portland Trail Blazers and Pelicans in that time.

OKC has been on a tear, winning 19 of their last 20 games, and that one loss was a three-point road loss to the Cavaliers, the same team they just beat at home by 20 on Thursday night. There's arguably no team playing better basketball as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is separating himself as the MVP favorite.

If the Thunder have any weaknesses, it's on their interior. They're without Isaiah Hartenstein and Chet Holmgren due to injuries and just started Jaylin Williams at center on Thursday. Dallas is without Dereck Lively II, so they won't have the same advantage they've had, but it's still something the Mavs would like to exploit.

The Thunder won the previous matchup between these two, a 118-104 victory in the NBA Cup Quarterfinals, as they found a way to stifle Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving.

Here's everything you need to know to watch the Mavs and Thunder.

Date/Time: Friday, January 17th, 7:30 p.m. CST

Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas, Texas

Team Records: Mavericks 22-19, Thunder 34-6

TV/Streaming: NBA League Pass, KFAA, MavsTV, FanDuel Sports Network - Oklahoma

Spread: Thunder -7

Over/Under: 222

Moneyline: Thunder -295, Mavericks +240

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER

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