Upcoming Match-ups

NBA Betting – Playoff Atmosphere on Tap for Rockets, Mavs

Zack Garrison

by Zack Garrison in News

Updated Jan 17, 2018 · 9:39 AM PST

Houston Rockets (-2, 208.5) at Dallas Mavericks

A pivotal Western Conference showdown is set for tonight as two of the teams battling for the last playoff spots will go head to head when the Houston Rockets (38-39, 17-22 Away) take on the Mavericks (39-38, 21-17 Home) at American Airlines Center in Dallas (9:30 PM Eastern).

The teams are separated by a mere one game in the standings. Dallas holds the seventh seed in the West; Houston the ninth. Not only are the Rockets just a single game back of Dallas, but they’re only a half-game behind the eighth-seeded Jazz. And things may be looking up for the team. Houston is coming off one of its best games of the season, beating the OKC Thunder (108-100) on Sunday, led by 41 points from James Harden. That was the third time in the last five games the Rockets have taken down a legit NBA contender, previously downing Cleveland and Toronto.

However, they sprinkled in setbacks to the Pacers and Bulls, which have kept them outside of the playoff picture for the moment.

That inconsistency has plagued the team all year. The Rockets haven’t won back to back games since early March, and it’s hard to guess which team will show up each night.

Dallas, on the other hand, has won four straight, with victories over Minnesota, Detroit, New York, and Denver. However, if the Mavs lose tonight, they will lose the potential tiebreaker against the Rockets: head-to-head record. (Houston has taken two of three so far this season.)

The Mavs may have to battle without two of their top three scorers tonight. Chandler Parsons (13.7 PPG) is out until at least the second round of the playoffs, should Dallas make it that far, while Deron Williams (14 PPG, 5.8 APG) is questionable with a sports hernia. If Williams can’t go, JJ Barea will get increased minutes, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Barea started in Williams’ stead against the T-Wolves on Sunday and led the team with 21 points and six dimes.

In the trends, the Rockets have dominated the Mavs over the last ten games, winning and covering in seven. Given the injury concerns with the Mavs, I’ll ride the Rockets.

Pick: Rockets (-2).

(Photo Credit: Keith Allison (Flickr) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/.)

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