The Oklahoma City Thunder are short on regulars against the Sacramento Kings, but Derrick Favors isn't one of them. Joe Mussatto confirmed that Favors would play on Saturday night after missing eight of the Thunder's past nine games with a back injury.
Derrick Favors will also play tonight. He's sat in eight of the last nine games.
— Joe Mussatto (@joe_mussatto) February 6, 2022
Favors hasn't been a meaningful offensive contributor for the Thunder this season, averaging just 5.1 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. Those stats have dragged his Offensive Box Plus/Minus down to -2.4, as per Basketball-Reference. Favors have been a more reliable defensive presence accumulating 0.6 Defensive Win Shares and a 0.1 Defensive Box Plus/Minus rating.
Oklahoma City will be without Luguentz Dort, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Aaron Wiggins for their Western Conference battle. That should mean additional minutes for Tre Mann, Darius Bazley, and Kenrich Williams against Sacramento. Mann and Bazley started against the Portland Trail Blazers last night but scored just nine and four points, respectively.
FanDuel Sportsbook has the Thunder priced as +8.5 underdogs for their matchup against the Kings. The total is set at 213.5.
