The Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder coasted to opening-round series wins over the Los Angeles Clippers and New Orleans Pelicans respectively. They compiled a combined record of 8-2 in the first round with five of those victories coming by double digits. Now, a Western Conference Semifinal series will see the two teams square off for a spot in the conference finals.
Game 1 will take place Tuesday night at the Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. It'll be a star-studded event as some of the league's best talents take the floor in this incredible matchup, including two of the three finalists for NBA MVP. How do oddsmakers view the series between the No. 1 and No. 5 seeds?
Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Dallas Mavericks series preview
FanDuel Sportsbook lists Oklahoma City as the slight favorite. The Thunder are -120 to advance, meaning interested bettors would have to wager $120 to earn $100. Betting on Dallas isn't as profitable as betting on other underdogs either. The Mavericks are -102 to win the series, which makes this the closest second-round matchup based on the lines.
The market flipped this series' odds on its head too. Dallas (-128) opened up as the favorite at FanDuel, which means oddsmakers are siding with experience. However, public money flooded in on the West's top seed — which opened at +104 — and bet Oklahoma City down to being the favorite.
In this series more than any other, veteran leadership could play a big factor. The Mavericks have plenty of experienced playmakers in Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, the latter of whom has won the NBA Finals before. Meanwhile, the Thunder's young core is playing in just its second playoff series, not that inexperienced proved to be a hindrance at any point in the opening round.
There's also the age-old "rest vs. rust" debate with Oklahoma City. The Thunder's sweep of the Pelicans means they'll have gone eight days between games, which is twice as long as Dallas' break.
Oklahoma City took three of four from the Mavericks this season, including the last two meetings. Both teams have blowout victories over the other this year, the most recent being the Thunder's 136-85 victory at home on April 14. Sandwiched in between the other two Oklahoma City wins is Dallas' 146-111 demolition job in February.
This series truly is too difficult to predict. It features two great coaches, two superstar MVP candidates and some solid supporting characters. The series has seven-game potential as it's hard to see either team commanding the early contests. In the end, I'll roll with the West's No. 1 seed to get the job done in six games.
Here is the schedule for the Western Conference semifinals complete with dates, times and television information:
Thunder-Mavericks Western Conference Playoffs schedule
Game 1: Mavericks at Thunder (-3.5) (Tuesday, May 7 at 8:30 p.m. CT on TNT)
Game 2: Mavericks at Thunder (Thursday, May 9 at 8:30 p.m. CT on ESPN)
Game 3: Thunder at Mavericks (Saturday, May 11 at 2:30 p.m. CT on ABC)
Game 4: Thunder at Mavericks (Monday, May 13, at 8:30 p.m. CT on TNT)
Game 5*: Mavericks at Thunder (Wednesday, May 15, TBD on TNT)
Game 6*: Thunder at Mavericks (Saturday, May 18, at 7:30 p.m. CT on ESPN)
Game 7*: Mavericks at Thunder (Monday, May 20, at 7:30 p.m. CT on TNT)
*-If necessary