The Phoenix Suns (25-24) continue their push for automatic playoff qualification as they journey to the Paycom Center to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder (39-9) on Thursday.
OKC, who have enjoyed a standout regular season campaign, hold a healthy lead at the top of the Western Conference standings and will set out looking to make it five back-to-back competitive wins over the visitors.
Match preview
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If it hadn't already been done, the Oklahoma City stamped their name as genuine championship favourites on Tuesday morning when they rolled past the Milwaukee Bucks 125-96 at the Paycom Center.
Having secured a 97-81 victory to clinch the 2024 NBA Cup when the two sides squared off on December 18, the Bucks set out seeking to secure back-to-back wins over the home side for the first time since November 2022.
But in the most one-sided of affairs, the Thunder opened up a 20-point lead which would spur them to a dominant wire-to-wire victory as they led by as many as 44 points in the fourth quarter to record a 25+ point victory for the second consecutive game.
Off the back of a 29-point shooting display against the Sacramento Kings, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander knocked down 34 points on an efficient 79% field goal while Ousmane Dieng tallied 21 off the bench.
With Tuesday's result, Mark Daigneault's men have now won three of their most recent four matches and have picked up 14 wins from their 15 games at Paycom Center this season — their only home defeat coming on January 24 when they fell 121-115 against the Dallas Mavericks.
The Oklahoma City Thunder boast a 39-9 record from their 48 regular-season matches to lead the way at the top of the Western Conference standings, five wins above second-placed Memphis Grizzlies, having played two fewer games.
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The Phoenix Suns, on the other hand, were on the wrong end of a narrow defeat against the Portland Trail Blazers as they fell 121-119 in overtime when the two sides squared off in the second of their two back-to-back meetings at the Moda Center on Tuesday morning.
Royce O'Neale drained a 3-pointer with 1.7 seconds left on the shot clock to tie the scores at 107 and force overtime, and with 4.4 seconds left in OT, Devin Booker had three trips to the line after being fouled on a 3-point attempt but missed the third after sinking the first two.
The Phoenix Suns have now lost all but one of their last four matches — with a 130-105 victory over the Golden State Warriors on February 1 being the exception — having won each of the three games preceding this run.
This slump in form has seen Mike Budenholzer's men drop into eighth-place in the Western Conference table with a 25-24 record from their 49 matches, three wins behind sixth-placed Los Angeles Clippers in the final automatic playoff spot.
While the Suns will be looking to bounce back on Thursday morning, next up is the challenge of a rampant OKC side who have won each of the last four regular-season meetings between the teams, stretching back to a 128-118 loss in April 2023.
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Team News
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The Oklahoma City Thunder remain without several players down the spine of the team as Chet Holmgren (hip), Ajay Mitchell (foot) and Nikola Topic (knee) continue their spells on the sidelines.
Alex Caruso and Jalen Williams missed Tuesday's clash against the Bucks through ankle and wrist injuries respectively and are also out of contention for the Thunder.
Cason Wallace is also recuperating from a shoulder problem and the 21-year-old guard is considered day-to-day heading into Thursday's clash.
Barring any late fitness issues, the Phoenix Suns will journey to the Paycom Center with a clean bill of health giving Budenholzer the luxury of a full house at his disposal.
Booker dropped a game-high 34 points against the Trail Blazers on Tuesday morning and in doing so the 28-year-old surpassed Walter Davis' franchise record of 15,666 points to become the Suns' all-time leading scorer.
Oklahoma City Thunder possible starting 5:
Wiggins, Dort, Hartenstein, Williams, Gilgeous-Alexander
Phoenix Suns possible starting 5:
Booker, Dunn, Jones, Richards, Durant
We say: Oklahoma City Thunder to win by 7+ points.
Fresh off the back of a dominant display against the Milwaukee Bucks, the Oklahoma City Thunder will head into this one with sky-high confidence as they look to strengthen their lead at the top of the Western Conference power rankings. OKC have made their home court a fortress this season and we are tipping them to see off the Suns, who have struggled for consistency of late.
Joshua Ojele
