Houston Rockets vs Portland Trail Blazers 12/17/22 NBA Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets meet Saturday in NBA action at the Toyota Center. The Portland Trail Blazers have won 5 of their last 7 games. The Houston Rockets have split their last 8 games.

The Portland Trail Blazers are averaging 112.6 points on 47.8 percent shooting and allowing 111.6 points on 47.4 percent shooting. Damian Lillard is averaging 28.8 points and 4.1 rebounds, while Anfernee Simons is averaging 23.7 points and 3.1 rebounds. Jerami Grant is the third double-digit scorer and Jusuf Nurkic is grabbing 10.3 rebounds. The Portland Trail Blazers are shooting 39 percent from beyond the arc and 77.6 percent from the free throw line. The Portland Trail Blazers are allowing 36.2 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 43.4 rebounds per game.

The Houston Rockets are averaging 110.3 points on 44.3 percent shooting and allowing 115.5 points on 47.5 percent shooting. Jalen Green is averaging 21.8 points and 3.5 rebounds, while Kevin Porter Jr. is averaging 18.7 points and 5.5 rebounds. Alperen Sengun is the third double-digit scorer and Eric Gordon is grabbing 2 rebounds. The Houston Rockets are shooting 33.9 percent from beyond the arc and 78.8 percent from the free throw line. The Houston Rockets are allowing 36.4 percent shooting from deep and are grabbing 46.7 rebounds per game.

The Trail Blazers are 11-4 ATS in their last 15 road games and 6-0 ATS in their last 6 games overall. The Rockets are 6-0-1 ATS in their last 7 home games and 3-1-1 ATS in their last 5 games overall. The over is 4-0 in Trail Blazers last 4 overall. The over is 5-2 in Rockets last 7 games playing on 1 days rest. The Trail Blazers are 4-0 ATS in the last 4 meetings in Houston.

The Portland Trail Blazers are the better team, but they’re on the end of a back to back, and they’re on the road where they’re not nearly as good at home. The Houston Rockets are athletic, fresh, and they’re playing competitive ball over the last two weeks. The Rockets are actually outscoring teams by an average of 3.2 points in their last 5 games. The Rockets are more than capable of winning this game given their current form. Give me the home dog.