Los Angeles Clippers vs Houston Rockets NBA Picks, Odds, Predictions 4/9/21
2021-04-09 22:00:00 EDT
The Los Angeles Clippers play host to the Houston Rockets at the Staples Center on Friday night.
The Houston Rockets have been in terrible form as they’ve lost 27 of their past 30 games, but they will be looking to stay hot after upsetting the red-hot Mavericks in a 102-93 home win on Wednesday. John Wall led the team with 31 points and seven assists on 12 of 23 shooting, Christian Wood added 22 points with 10 rebounds while Kevin Porter Jr. chipped in with 14 points. As a team, the Rockets shot 43 percent from the field and 17 of 44 from the 3-point line as they hit the ground running and took the early lead after holding the Mavericks to just 19 points in the second quarter, before holding them to just 22 points in the third quarter to lead by as many as 13 points. Sterling Brown scored just nine points on three of 10 shooting while DJ Augustin scored just three points on one of nine shooting.
Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Clippers have been on a tear lately as they’ve reeled off 10 wins in their past 12 games and they will be aiming for a fourth straight victory after taking down the Suns in a 113-103 home win on Thursday. Paul George drained seven 3-pointers to lead the team with 33 points on 12 of 19 shooting, Kawhi Leonard added 27 points with five rebounds and five assists while Rajon Rondo chipped in with 15 points and nine assists in just 19 minutes off the bench. As a team, the Clippers shot 50 percent from the field and 18 of 37 from the 3-point line as they got off to a sloppy start and fell behind at halftime, before taking over in the second half where they outscored the Suns by 59-47 to win comfortably in the end.
Looking at the betting trends, the Rockets are 4-9 ATS in their last 13 road games, 4-1 ATS in their last five games against a team above .600 and 17-38 ATS in their last 55 games overall. The Clippers are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 home games, 1-4 ATS in their last five games against a team with a losing record and 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games overall.
Head to head, the over is 5-2 in the last seven meetings overall, the Rockets are 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings in Los Angeles and the Rockets are 4-1 ATS in the last five meetings overall.
The Rockets have been the coldest team in the league, but they were able to surprise everyone with a big upset win over the red-hot Mavericks in their last outing thanks to a big game from Wall, while the Clippers are coming into this one as one of the hottest teams in the league as they’ve been running through everyone lately. I’d be tempted to take the points if the Rockets were at full strength, but Wall is being rested for this game, so I’m sticking with the Clippers to win this one easily.
