NBA Best Bets for Rockets at Mavericks for December 24th
NBA BEST BETS FOR ROCKETS AT MAVERICKS FOR DECEMBER 24TH - The Dallas Mavericks (19-16) play host to state rivals Houston Rockets, who sit at the bottom of the Western Conference with the worst record (10-24).
Mavericks are currently on a four-game winning streak as Luka Doncic made history on Tuesday night against the Knicks. The 23-year-old point guard became the first player to record 60 points, 21 rebounds and 10 assists in a triple double.
The Rockets have not played in front of a home crowd since their defeat on Christmas Eve to the same opponents they face this time around. Despite a victory over Chicago Bulls, they started a fresh losing run almost immediately with defeat to the Boston Celtics.
The Dallas Mavericks are currently third in the league for percentage of three pointers made in a game with exactly 40% made this season. Luka Doncic leads the league with total points as he is already over the 1000 points mark. The Boston Celtics Jayson Tatum is the only other player in the league to break that mark.
The Odds
Matchup |
Open |
Spread |
Points |
Moneyline |
Rockets(10-24) |
+10 |
+10 |
o226 |
+340 |
Mavericks(19-16) |
-10 |
u226 |
-540 |
Tipoff
When: Thursday 8:30 pm EST, December 29th, 2022
Where: American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX
TV: TNT
Odds courtesy of DraftKings, as of December 29th, 2022
Dominant Doncic
Luka Doncic for the Mavericks is currently sitting in the top five league leaders for both points per game and assists per game, with 33.6 points per game. He's only slightly behind Joel Embiid’s 33.7 points per game, as well as fourth for assists in the league with 8.8 per game.
The point guard also currently leads the league in fantasy points per game.
Doncic is leading the Mavericks in all statistics except blocks, averaging 8.7 rebounds per game as well as 1.7 assists per game. Leading in so many statistics, he is making a strong statement in the league MVP race and is leading Dallas’ charge towards a strong post season run should they reach the playoffs.
Ruinous Rockets
For the Rockets sitting bottom of the conference, with an appalling record, it is certainly game over already this early in the season for them and it would be wise to “tank” this season and begin again next season following strong draft picks should they get them.
One player who’s been a bright spark in the team is Kevin Porter Jr. a point guard they don’t believe to be starting quality yet has their second highest points average in the team and leads the team in steals.
Averaging 1.4 steals per game and 19.3 points per game, he is certainly someone who can be the future of this franchise should they retain him. One main concern to have for his game is his turnover statistic, his average of 3.7 turnovers per game is something that the Rockets need to address.
The Pick
This game won’t be settled on fast break offense and defense. The Mavericks currently sit bottom of NBA fast break scoring with 9.9 fast break points per game, while the Rockets score higher in 26th with 11.6 per game.
However, Dallas sit 11th for fast break defense in the league, allowing 13.0 points per game. The Rockets have the worst in the league sitting bottom giving up an average of 17.6 fast break points per game.
The fast break may well be nullified but Dallas has a chance to increase their average this game against the worst team in these situations in the league, while Dallas won’t give up points easily to a team who already do not score much on the fast break.
With the Mavericks so high in the three-point scoring percentage, this is where they pile the misery on for the Rockets who sit 29th in three-point defense with 42.4 per game while Dallas has a solid defensive game against shooting from beyond the perimeter, fourth in the league only allowing 33.2 per game.
An easy pick here with the Rockets performing so poorly this season and the Mavericks flying so high guided by Luka you would have to take the Mavericks to come away with this one.
Chris's Pick |
Mavericks -10 |