Sacramento Kings vs Houston Rockets Prediction, 12/31/2020 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Sacramento Kings vs Houston Rockets

Date: Thursday, December 31, 2020

Location: Toyota Center in Houston, TX

TV: NBC Sports California

Odds/Point Spread: Sacramento (+3)

The Houston Rockets (0-2) play the Sacramento Kings (3-1) at Toyota Center on Thursday. Sacramento opens this contest as 3-point dogs. The over/under is set at 227.

The Sacramento Kings faced the Denver Nuggets and walked away with a win by a score of 125-115 in their last game. Sacramento ended the contest with a 48.9% field goal percentage (46 of 94) and knocked down 16 out of their 33 shots from distance. From the charity stripe, the Kings made 17 of 22 shots for a percentage of 77.3%. When it comes to pulling down boards, they earned 37 with 12 of them being of the offensive sort. They also recorded 33 dimes in the game as well as earning 9 steals and 2 blocks. Pertaining to defending, Sacramento allowed 54.3% from the floor on 44 of 81 shooting. Denver doled out 27 assists and had 7 steals in the matchup. Additionally, the Nuggets had 39 rebounds (7 offensive, 32 defensive) and had 5 blocks. Denver ended up going 80.0% from the free throw line by knocking down 16 of 20 tries. They buried 11 of 28 shots from beyond the arc.

De'Aaron Fox is a player who was a contributor for the game. He notched 24 points on 8 out of 15 shooting. He played for 35:03 minutes played and also collected 3 rebounds. Fox finished the contest at 53.3% from the floor and also dished out 9 assists. Another guy that was a major factor in the game for the Kings was Richaun Holmes. He had 5 rebounds and also had 3 assists. He finished the contest at 76.9% from the floor for the contest by going 10-of-13 (20 points). At the conclusion of this game, Holmes was on the hardwood for 32:00 minutes.

Sacramento heads into this game with a mark of 3-1 on the season. The Kings are shooting 37.3% on 3-pointers (41 of 110) and 73.9% from the charity stripe. They currently have an average of 113.8 pts per game (12th in the NBA) while shooting 46.4% from the field. They turn it over 14.8 times per contest and as a unit they are committing 23.0 personal fouls every game. As a team, Sacramento is pulling down 46.5 rebounds per game and has accounted for 101 assists for the campaign, which has them ranked 7th in basketball in terms of passing. On the defensive end, the Kings are forcing 13.8 turnovers per contest and they draw 21.5 personal fouls. They give up 32.4% on shots from distance and they rank 19th in the NBA in PPG allowed (114.0). The Kings defense is giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 48.0% (55 of 86) and they concede 42.3 boards per game as a squad. They are currently ranked 29th in basketball in giving up assists to the opposition with 114 conceded so far this season.

In their last game, the Houston Rockets took a loss by a score of 124-111 when they faced the Denver Nuggets. The Rockets recorded 33 defensive rebounds and 5 offensive rebounds totaling 38 for this contest. They also rejected 3 shots while getting 8 steals for the game. The Nuggets committed 18 fouls in the game which took the Rockets to the free throw line for a total of 23 shots. They were able to make 17 of the free throw attempts for a percentage of 73.9%. When it comes to shots from 3-point land, Houston made 16 of 39 attempts (41.0%). At the conclusion of this game, the Rockets shot 39 for 86 from the field which gave them a percentage of 45.3%. The Rockets permitted the Nuggets to bury 46 out of their 87 tries from the field which gave them a percentage of 52.9% in this contest. They finished 45.2% from 3-point land by going 14 of 31 and ended up shooting 18 of 32 at the free throw line (56.3%). In relation to rebounding, Houston allowed Denver to pull down 52 overall (11 on the offensive side).

James Harden ended up having an impact for the Rockets for this game. He knocked down 10 of 16 in the matchup giving him a rate of 62.5%, which gave him 34 points. Harden collected 6 rebounds in his 31:29 minutes of playing time and had 8 assists in this contest. One more player who came through for Houston was Christian Wood. He ended up with 23 points in his 36:49 mins played by way of 9 out of 20 shooting for this game. Wood wrapped this one up going 45.0% from the field in addition to earning 2 assists and 3 boards.

Houston has a mark of 0-2 for the year. Houston has scored 237 points this season (118.5 per game) and they pull down 40.0 rebounds per game. The Rockets have committed 23.5 fouls every game and they hit 76.4% from the free throw line. As an offense, the Rockets are hitting on 48.6% from the field, which has them ranked 6th in basketball. They are dishing out assists 26.0 times per game (10th in the league) and they are turning it over 16.0 times per contest. The Rockets are ranked 30th in the league in points allowed per contest with 126.0. They are able to force 15.0 turnovers on a nightly basis and have let teams shoot 49.2% from the field (29th in the league). The Houston defense allows 43.4% on shots from beyond the arc (33 of 76) and opponents are making 60.0% of their free throw shots. They have given up 29.0 assists and 48.5 rebounds per contest, which has them ranked 28th and 24th in the NBA.

So what is Tonights Parlay prediction?

Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take Houston (-3) and over 227 points

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