The Oklahoma City Thunder are taking on the Portland Trail Blazers as the two sides get set for a back-to-back set in the same venue as the Trail Blazers and Thunder will have a rematch tomorrow night inside the Moda Center.

Oklahoma City will be attempting to ride the momentum created from a four-game winning streak with a pair of wins over the Eastern Conference contending Cavs, the spunky Memphis Grizzlies, and the Washington Wizards. The Thunder have found their footing after disastrous injuries that see Oklahoma City compete without six standard roster players. Headlined by All-NBA swingman Jalen Williams, All-Defensive guard Cason Wallace and All-NBA big man Chet Holmgren. The Bricktown Ballers are bracing for the former two to miss the entire season, while Holmgren is expected to return in 8 to 11 weeks.

The Oklahoma City Thunder handled their second back-to-back set last week the same way they did their first, a sweep. While keeping the minutes of the team’s healthy stars down thanks to a pair of blowout victories.

Portland presents a tougher challenge, and these two games will be the most difficult of the team’s four-game road trip, which wraps up with the L.A. Clippers on Friday and the Sacramento Kings on Sunday night.

Oklahoma City has the ability to go perfect on this road trip and parlay a four-game winning streak into eight, but with how tough winning in Portland has historically been for this team, splitting this back-to-back set is the main goal. Here are three critical storylines to watch in the opening game of this twin-bill.

3 Critical Storylines to Watch in OKC Thunder vs. Portland Trail Blazers

1) How Does OKC Thunder Keep Deni Avdija in check?

The Oklahoma City Thunder are down All-Defensive options in Chet Holmgren, Jalen Williams, and Cason Wallace. Their best point-of-attack option is Alex Caruso, who likely can’t play healthy minutes on either side of a back-to-back. That means Kenrich Williams and two-way options Josh Dix and Micah Peavy are the next in line to challenge the big scoring wing for the Trail Blazers, who is a battering ram to the rim. What is the game plan to stop Avdija from scoring in isolation, getting to the free-throw line, while also not conceding too many clean looks from beyond the arc? Safe to say it will be tough, but with Isaiah Hartenstein and Aday Mara capable of anchoring the Thunder’s defense at the rim, it is doable.

2) Who has the better 3 point shooting night?

The Oklahoma City Thunder and Portland Trail Blazers are sitting in the middle of the NBA at No. 15 and No. 14, respectively, in 3-point percentage. While each side is capable of big shooting nights, they are also capable of dreadful outings. This game could largely be defined by which team’s role players find the bottom of the net more often from distance.

3) Do the OKC Thunder go deep in its bench in preparation of night two?

The Oklahoma City Thunder are down six standard roster spots; Nique Clifford –– now the 15th man on the roster –– arrived in town Monday just before hopping on a bird with the team to Portland. While he is active tonight, how much can Mark Daigneault put him in? Time will tell. The comfortable active players are down to eight on the 15-man roster, with only two helpful two-way options in Josh Dix and Micah Peavy. Seeing how Daigneault manages minutes in the first game of this back-to-back will have an impact on tomorrow’s outing. Balancing that with the goal of winning tonight will be an interesting storyline to follow.

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