Houston Rockets vs Philadelphia 76ers Prediction 12-29-23 NBA Picks

The Houston Rockets play host to the Philadelphia 76ers at the Toyota Center on Friday night. Here’s a Rockets vs 76ers Prediction.

Philadelphia 76ers

The Philadelphia 76ers have been in pretty good form as they’ve won nine of their last 11 games overall and they will be eager to keep it going after blowing past the Magic in a 112-92 road win on Wednesday. Tyrese Maxey led the team with 23 points, Tobias Harris and De’Anthony Melton scored 22 points each, while Paul Reed chipped in with 15 points and 10 rebounds. As a team, the 76ers shot 46 percent from the field and 10 of 28 from the 3-point line, but this win was more about their defense as they held the Magic to just 21 points in the second quarter to take control early, before they held the Magic to just 17 points in the fourth quarter to pull away and win comfortably. 

Philadelphia 76ers Team Facts

• The 76ers have won each of their last 16 games as road favorites.
• The 76ers have failed to cover the spread in each of their last nine games on the first leg of a back-to-back against Western Conference opponents.
• Each of the 76ers’ last six road games against Southwest Division opponents have gone OVER the total points line.

Houston Rockets 

Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets have been in a slump as they’ve lost five of their last seven games overall, and they will be hoping to snap a two-game skid after getting burned by the Suns in a 129-113 loss on Wednesday. Alperen Sengun led the team with 24 points on nine of 18 shooting, Jalen Green added 23 points while Fred VanVleet chipped in with 10 points and six assists. As a team, the Rockets shot 41 percent from the field and 17 of 41 from the 3-point line as they struggled to match the Suns intensity early on and were never in the contest after leaking 43 points in the second quarter. 

Houston Rockets Team Facts

• The Rockets have lost each of their last 12 games as underdogs against opponents who are on the first leg of a back-to-back.
• The Rockets have failed to cover the spread in seven of their last eight night games against Eastern Conference opponents.
• Each of the Rockets’ last six Friday games have gone UNDER the total points line.

Rockets vs 76ers Prediction

The 76ers are going to be shorthanded again with Nicolas Batum and Joel Embiid both ruled out already, while the Rockets are still missing Jabari Smith Jr and Dillon Brooks. The 76ers are coming into this one as one of the hottest teams in the league despite the injury to Embiid, while the Rockets have gone cold and are coming off a bad loss to the slumping Suns. The 76ers represent decent value in this coin flip of a game, so I’ll back the 76ers to get the narrow win behind a big game from Maxey.