Portland Trail Blazers vs Houston Rockets Prediction, Preview and Odds - 12/17/2022

Game Time: 8:00 pm ET, Saturday, December 17, 2022

Venue:  Toyota Center, Houston, TX

Where to Watch:  ROOT Sports NW

DraftKings:  Point Spread:  Trail Blazers -3.5, Rockets +3.5; Over/Under:  227.5 points

Bet365:  Point Spread:  Trail Blazers -3.5, Rockets +3.5; Over/Under:  227.5 points

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Trail Blazers -3.5, Rockets +3.5; Over/Under:  227.5 points

 

Portland Trail Blazers:  16-12 (2nd place, Northwest Division)

Houston Rockets:  9-19 (5th place, Southwest Division)

 

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Portland Trail Blazers:  6-4 last 10

Houston Rockets:  5-5 last 10

 

The Trail Blazers are coming into this game with a 16-12 record overall and they are 9-6 in their road games this season where they will be in this game. They still have a game against the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night that needs to be played first since this is the 2nd leg of a back-to-back for them on Saturday. They are entering this game on a 3 game winning streak with wins coming against the Minnesota Timberwolves twice and the San Antonio Spurs in their last game. Damian Lillard led the team in points in that game with 37 while Anfernee Simons was next on the team with 23 points. Damian Lillard led the team in assists in that game with 8 while Josh Hart led the team in rebounds with 10. They were 60.5% from the field, 45% from 3-point range, and 70.6% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 112.6 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 111.6 PPG against them. The Trail Blazers have an ATS record of 19-9 this season and their O/U record is 13-13-2.

 

 

 

The Rockets are coming into this game with a 9-19 record overall and they are 6-6 in their home games this season where they will be in this game. They are entering this game off of a loss against the Miami Heat in their last game. Jalen Green led the team in points in that game with 22 while Kevin Porter Jr. was next on the team with 21 points. Kevin Porter Jr. and Tyty Washington Jr. each led the team in assists in that game with 5 while Jabari Smith Jr. led the team in rebounds with 11. They were 46.8% from the field, 27.3% from 3-point range, and 64.7% from the free throw line with their shots in that game. Their offense is averaging 110.2 PPG and their defense is allowing their opponents to average 115.4 PPG against them. The Rockets have an ATS record of 14-12-2 this season and their O/U record is 14-14.

The current betting odds have the Rockets listed as a 3.5 point underdog in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Rockets have been terrible this season with one of the worst records in the NBA, but they haven't been playing badly in their games lately and they have been much better on their home court too. The Trail Blazers are off to a great start this season, they have had their rough patches but as long as Lillard is healthy, they have been a very tough team to beat. They have one of the best ATS records in the NBA this season and they are even one of the few teams with a winning record on the road too. The Trail Blazers will be on a back-to-back here though and they have to travel for this 2nd game which gives the Rockets a much bigger advantage being at home and being rested. The Rockets have also been playing very well since the father of their coach passed away, pulling off a lot of upsets over the last week and even keeping their losses close. They will have another good effort here on their home court and they are getting the Trail Blazers in a very tough spot for them. The best way to place a bet here is on the Rockets to cover the spread in this game.

 

Trail Blazers Rockets Prediction:  Our NBA Pick for Saturday, December 17, 2022 (8:00 pm ET start time) is Rockets 121 Trail Blazers 116.

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Portland Trail Blazers: 17-9 ATS in all games. 11-4 ATS in road games. 7-0 OVER as a favorite of 3.5 to 9.5 points. 

Houston Rockets: 10-21 ATS as a home underdog of 6 points or less. 16-27 ATS in a home game where the total is 220 to 229.5. 10-3 OVER after successfully covering the spread in 3 or more consecutive games.

 

 

Portland Trail Blazers:  D. Eubanks (PF) Prob Fri - Teeth. T. Watford (SF) Prob Fri - Achilles. G. Payton II (PG) Out indefinitely - Abdominal. J. Hart (SG) Prob Fri - Ankle. N. Little (SF) Mid Jan - Hip.

Houston Rockets:  A. Sengun (C) Ques Sat - Foot. J. Tate (SF) Late Dec - Ankle.

 

 

 

“We’re not going to have the No. 1 efficiency when your best player is not playing. So, you’ve got to give him a lot of that credit.” - Chauncey Billups after his team’s win against the Spurs in their game on Wednesday.

 

 

“It was definitely encouraging to give the fight that we did at the end of the game. Our late-game defense has been really good. But the way the first half went, where there were 50-50 balls and hustle plays that we weren’t getting, that’s not us.” - Stephen Silas after his team’s loss against the Heat in their game on Thursday.

 

 

 

PG Damian Lillard

SG Anfernee Simons

SF Josh Hart

PF Jerami Grant

C Jusuf Nurkic

 

PG Kevin Porter Jr.

SG Jalen Green

SF Eric Gordon

PF Jabari Smith Jr. 

C Alperen Sengun

 

 

PPG: D. Lillard (28.8)

APG: D. Lillard (7.1)

Reb/G: J. Nurkic (10.3)

 

PPG: J. Green (21.8)

APG: K. Porter Jr. (5.7)

Reb/G: A. Sengun (8.8)

 

Coaches:

Portland Trail Blazers: Chauncey Billups (2nd season)

Houston Rockets: Stephen Silas (3rd season)