Houston Rockets at Dallas Mavericks 7/31/20: NBA Basketball free preview, analysis, prediction, odds and pick against the spread.
2020-07-31 21:00:00 EDT
The Dallas Mavericks and the Houston Rockets do battle at the Wide World of Sports Complex on Friday night.
The Dallas Mavericks will be eager to get back into the swing of things as they were playing some of their best basketball before the season suspension. Luka Doncic has made a strong case for MVP this season as he has averaged 28.7 points, 9.3 rebounds and 8.7 assists per game, Kristaps Porzingis averaged 19.2 points with 9.5 rebounds per game, Tim Hardaway Jr. averaged 15.8 points per game while Seth Curry averaged 12.6 points per game off the bench. In terms of injuries, the Mavericks are without Dwight Powell, Jalen Brunson, Courtney Lee and Willie Cauley-Stein.
Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets came into this season with a vengeance as they traded away Clint Capela for Robert Covington in a shock move to reinforce their small-ball tactics. James Harden led the team with averages of 34.4 points, 6.4 rebounds and 7.4 assists per game, Russell Westbrook averaged 27.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 7.0 assists per game while Eric Gordon averaged 14.5 points per game. As a team, the Rockets averaged 11.8.1 points per game which ranked second in the league.
Looking at the betting trends, the Mavericks are 6-2 ATS in their last eight games as a road underdog, 14-6 ATS in their last 20 games as an underdog and 5-11 ATS in their last 16 road games. The Mavericks are 1-7 ATS in their last eight home games against a team with a winning road record and 7-3 ATS in their last 10 Friday games.
Head to head, the under is 10-4-1 in the last 15 meetings overall and the Rockets are 1-5 ATS in the last six meetings overall.
The Mavericks come into this one with a few injuries, but all their key players are there which is so key with the playoffs just around the corner. The Rockets are already without Thabo Sefalosha and they will also be without Eric Gordon who is expected to miss at least two weeks after spraining his ankle in Tuesday’s scrimmage. This game has major playoff implications, so this is serious business for both teams, but in the end I have the Mavericks winning in a close one as the Rockets struggle without Gordon.
