The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs meet Tuesday to open the 2026-27 NBA season. Tip-off from Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas, is set for 9:30 p.m. ET (NBC). Let's analyze NBA odds around the Thunder vs. Spurs odds and make our expert NBA picks and predictions for the best bets.
2025-26 season series: Spurs won 4-1 (including in NBA Cup) and won both games in San Antonio
Oklahoma City's offseason was mostly quiet after the Thunder went 64-18 to finish with the best record in the Western Conference last season. They swept the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Lakers before losing a 7-game series to the Spurs in the West finals. The Thunder lost rotational pieces that were key to their 2025 championship: F Lugentz Dort, G Aaron Wiggins,
and G Isaiah Joe. OKC returns its core 9, led by 2-time MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (31.1 points per game), but beyond that the Thunder will be looking to see which young players can step up and find a way into this rotation.
San Antonio, which went 62-20 last season, added to its frontcourt after losing in 5 games to the New York Knicks in the NBA Finals. They brought in veteran F Tobias Harris from Detroit and drafted F Jayden Quaintance (although both are out for Tuesday), and traded for rookie F Tarris Reed Jr. during the NBA Draft. The Spurs are led by C Viktor Wembayama, who averaged 25 points, 11.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 3.6 blocks per game last season. Second-year G Dylan Harper, who averaged 18 points and 6 rebounds in the Finals, will enter the starting lineup after being a sixth man for the majority of his rookie year.
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Thunder at Spurs odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated Monday at 7:29 p.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Thunder +105 (bet $100 to win $105) | Spurs -130 (bet $130 to win $100)
- Against the spread (ATS): Thunder +2.5 (-115) | Spurs -2.5 (-105)
- Over/Under (O/U): 231.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)
Thunder at Spurs key injuries
Thunder
- G Thomas Sorber (knee) out
- F Nikola Topic (back) out
Spurs
- F Tobias Harris (calf) out
- F Jayden Quaintance (knee) out
For most recent updates: Official NBA injury report.
Thunder at Spurs picks and predictions
Prediction
San Antonio 118, Oklahoma City 116
Moneyline
PASS.
A lot of the Thunder's success in this matchup hinges on the health of F Jalen Williams, who is their second-best player, and he has declared himself completely healthy after injuries limited him to just 33 regular-season and 4 postseason games last season. On the other side, I wonder how the Spurs rotations and defense will look with Harper starting in place of a bigger body.
This will be a tight matchup, and with major question marks heading into it for both teams, flat out avoiding the moneyline is best.
Against the spread
BET THUNDER +2.5 (-115).
Having Williams back, who missed the entirety of the Western Conference Finals, is huge for the Thunder. In that playoff series, the Spurs were able to win largely because of the turnovers and stops they were able to force when the ball was not in the hands of back-to-back MVP Gilgeous-Alexander. Now that the Thunder have their second ball handler back, they will be a much harder team for San Antonio to guard.
On the other side, I could see San Antonio struggling to guard on the perimeter against this much taller OKC starting lineup.
Over/Under
LEAN OVER 231.5 (-110).
OKC will be extremely tough to stop with Williams back in the lineup, and the Thunder will have trouble dealing with the offensive capabilities that the Spurs have with that 3-guard lineup. These are teams that are infamous for their defenses, but look for the superstars on both teams to have superstar performances here, and expect that free throws play a role in the Over cashing here.
The Over hit in 5 of 7 games when these squads matched up in the Western Conference Finals.
This is a lean because these were 2 of the top 3 teams in defensive rating last season, and because Wembanyama is the best defensive player in basketball, so this could become a defensive matchup.
Best prop bet
Spurs G DYLAN HARPER OVER 15.5 POINTS (-108 FanDuel Sportsbook).
Harper had his breakout in the NBA Finals, and his insertion into the starting lineup, in spite of All-Star G De'Aaron Fox still being on the team, signals to me that he has continued to improve. Look for Harper to have a major role in San Antonio's offense, especially in rotations where he is allowed to really command the offense, and expect that he is very aggressive on the offensive end.
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This article originally appeared on Sportsbook Wire: Oklahoma City Thunder at San Antonio Spurs odds, picks and predictions
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