Why an OKC-Cleveland Showdown Should be Good for Sports Betting

Ratings are up, the competition just keeps on getting special, and it does seem that there are a lot of massive expectations to consider from both teams as the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Cleveland Cavaliers when they met one another twice in a gauntlet of a schedule in January, and believe it or not, it does make up for a promising NBA Finals to look out for.

 

OKC vs Cleveland Showdown image

📖 Published on: January 28th, 2025

✍️ Updated: January 29th, 2025

⏳ 10 mins read

Why a Cavs-Thunder Finals Could be Special?

For the whole season, there’s been two teams who have managed to stay at the top spot of their respective conferences while keeping their losses below 10. Both the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Oklahoma City Thunder have arrived at a promising part of their campaigns where they are now showing impressive strides compared to seasons ago.

We need seven games of this image

It has been a long journey for both teams – the Thunder moved on from its franchise star in Russell Westbrook, while the Cavaliers were reeling from the exit of LeBron James in 2018. In just a few years’ time, it does seem that both teams were destined to lift off in the same year and eventually come up with a promising rise to the top of the league when no one expected it.

OKC and CLE Team Records (2020-Present)

Season Oklahoma City Thunder Cleveland Cavaliers
2020-21 22-50 22-50
2021-22 24-58 44-38
2022-23 40-42 51-31
2023-24 57-25 48-34
*2024-25 37-8 37-9

*2024-25 record updated as of Jan. 28, 2025

Considering the fact that these teams have become quite impressive so far in just a short amount of time, one can say that there’s a massive boon as to what these squads bring to the table should they make it to the NBA Finals. Of course, both teams will still have to deal with the contenders in their respective conferences, with the Cavaliers needing to take down defending champions Boston Celtics in the East.

Let’s not forget how competitive the teams are in the Western Conference – with the Thunder still needing to deal with at least the remaining teams in the West, with contenders up to the 10th seed being on the .500 mark for the first time since 2010. As tough as it sounds, it will do good to see the NBA find these two teams battling for the top of the big stage now more than ever.

Breaking Down the Games

These two teams have met twice in the regular season, and boy it was indeed spectacular. The ratings of the NBA were up better than before, and the level of competition was on track to what was the answer for the talks that the NBA is getting less competitive and boring to watch at this point. The Cavs vs Thunder matchup was absolute cinema, and it showed a lot of promise of what people can expect should these warring squads deliver a massive ending for the 2024-25 season.

Let’s break down how these games went:

Game 1 - January 8, 2025

CLE won 129-122 vs OKC Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4
Cleveland Cavaliers 25 37 41 26
Oklahoma City Thunder 32 27 43

20

The Thunder started strong in this game, but the Cavaliers were quick to come up with an impressive comeback of their own and took over the game in the second quarter. It was the heroics of Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen, who used their size to capitalize a massive fourth quarter rally, where the Cavs outscored OKC 26-20, including a key dagger from Darius Garland.

Jarrett Allen led the way for the Cavaliers with 25 points, 11 rebounds and six assists, while Evan Mobley also dominated the game with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and seven assists. It was the strong playmaking from this dynamic duo that proved to be the story of the win, and fans were definitely thrilled with the ending as it was a wire-to-wire game.

Cavs took the W in their first meeting image

OKC had a strong outing as well, but they came up short. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 31 points, while Jalen Williams had 25 points, nine assists, and five rebounds. Isaiah Hartenstein, the only Thunder player on the lineup that time, also put up 18 points, 11 rebounds, and eight assists.

This game featured a total of 30 lead changes, eight ties, and no team ever led by more than 10 points, with Oklahoma City leading by as many as nine points. It was a sign of things to come, as the Cavaliers also extended their winning streak to 11 games, including an undefeated stretch against the Western Conference, while they snapped the Thunder’s streak of 15 wins in a row.

Game 2 - January 16, 2025

OKC won 134-114 vs CLE Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4
Oklahoma City Thunder 32 43 44 15
Cleveland Cavaliers 14 35 32 33

Hyped as “The Rematch” after the success of the first meeting in Cleveland, the second game of their season series shifted to Oklahoma City, and the crowd played a huge role in helping the Thunder gain momentum for most of the game. What made it even quite more unexpected is that Hartenstein was ruled out of the game due to an injury from OKC’s previous game.

So the Thunder rode with a small-ball lineup. What was expected to be an easy game from Allen and Mobley turned out to be a disaster as the Thunder managed to blow out the league leaders and lead by as many as 42 points, before finishing the game with a margin of 20 points.

The Thunder responded with dominance in their second meeting image

SGA had 40 points and eight assists on an efficient night of 17/26 shooting – finishing his night in just three quarters on 29 minutes of action. Luguentz Dort also drilled six threes and notched 22 points while holding Donovan Mitchell to just three field goals – just as he did in their first meeting. Jalen Williams scored 19 points, six rebounds, and five assists while leading the Thunder’s defense with three steals and two blocks.

Darius Garland led the Cavaliers in the losing effort with 20 points on 7/10 shooting. Jarrett Allen had 13 points on perfect shooting, but was limited to just 16 minutes of action, while Mobley just had five points on 2/7 shooting. OKC’s defense swarmed them all-day, and limited their effectiveness with the small-ball lineup.

Once again, the Thunder defense has proven to be pivotal in this win, with OKC having 25 assists and 12 steals, while forcing a whopping total of 21 turnovers from the Cavaliers. On top of that, the Thunder were undersized, and yet they matched Cleveland’s points in the paint with 54. This just shows how OKC can be lethal – even if they aren’t healthy at all.

How do the Odds Line Up for a Cavs-Thunder Finals?

So far, the odds for the NBA Finals have been a fun watch at this point in time, and it is safe to say that there will be a huge show to watch in June when these two teams collide on the big stage. If you are confident enough to see that they will get to the biggest stage of the NBA soon, then maybe you should consider visiting GambleSpot’s parlay and odds calculator to get a grasp of your potential winnings or even find out how your odds will translate if you get lucky.

2025 NBA Finals Odds (Updated as of January 29, 2025)

Rank Team Best Odds to Win
1 Boston Celtics +200
2 Oklahoma City Thunder +250
3 Cleveland Cavaliers +800
4 New York Knicks +1100
5 Denver Nuggets +1400

Based on the current odds, the Thunder and the Cavaliers are likely to come up as one of the two contenders for the title at this point, with bettors favoring a Boston-Oklahoma City clash instead of Cleveland. Of course, the odds only tell half of the story, and it cannot be denied that there are indeed high expectations that these two teams will find each other on the big stage come June.

Should We Expect an OKC-CLE Clash in the Finals?

Definitely. The Cavaliers and the Thunder have never met in the Finals, and one can even say that this is going to be a landmark matchup that will definitely make the NBA an even more promising showdown to look out for at this point in time. Fans would love to see a showdown that isn’t lopsided all the time – and some new teams as well.

This is a potential dream finals matchup image

It can be remembered that these two teams were nearly there for a Finals date back in 2016. That was a time when LeBron James led the Cavaliers, and OKC was at the peak of its Kevin Durant era. The Cavaliers defeated the Raptors in six games, while OKC blew a 3-1 lead to lose to the Warriors. In the end, the Cavaliers won its first title, and who knows, maybe this new iteration of Cleveland and Oklahoma City will finally bring a new dynamic in the NBA.

Make sure to consult our GambleAI if you have some concerns in your betting plans or in need of a new betting strategy. The more well-thought your wagers are, the bigger your chances of winning in each of your wagers!

Don’t miss out on the latest in the NBA and the rest of the sports and esports world! GambleSpot has you covered when it comes to the hottest news, blogs, gambling guides, tournament previews, and even some discussion on betting strategies. Make use of all our content to spice up your chances of winning and enjoy your betting experience like no other!

Similar articles

Are you sure?

This will delete all chat history, and I will not remember what we were talking about.

Todays Hot Deals