San Antonio Spurs vs Houston Rockets Prediction, 12/17/2020 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: San Antonio Spurs vs Houston Rockets

Date: Thursday, December 17, 2020

Location: Toyota Center in Houston, TX

TV: NBA League Pass

Odds/Point Spread: San Antonio (-2.5)

Toyota Center is the site where and the Houston Rockets (44-28 last year) will take on the San Antonio Spurs (32-39 last season) on Thursday. Houston opens this contest as 2.5-point dogs. The O/U has been set at 216.

San Antonio heads into this contest after finishing with a mark of 32-39 last season. They turned it over 12.6 times per contest and as a group committed 19.4 fouls on a nightly basis. As a group, San Antonio collected 44.6 boards per contest and had 1,751 dimes last season, which was 14th in basketball in terms of passing the ball. The Spurs shot 37.6% on 3-point shots (760 of 2,021) and 81.0% from the charity stripe. They averaged 114.1 pts per game (8th in basketball) while connecting on 47.2% from the field. On defense, the Spurs forced 13.2 turnovers per contest and they drew 20.1 fouls. They gave up 37.3% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they were 25th in the league in PPG allowed (115.2). The Spurs defense allowed and opponent field goal percentage of 46.9% (3,004 of 6,402) and they surrendered 45.3 rebounds per game as a team. They were 27th in basketball in giving up assists with 1,825 relinquished last season.

The San Antonio Spurs took the court against the Houston Rockets and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 112-98 in their last preseason game. San Antonio finished the game having earned a 42.9% field goal percentage (36 out of 84) and buried 10 out of their 31 3-pointers. At the free throw line, the Spurs made 16 of 27 attempts for a rate of 59.3%. Concerning rebounding, they earned 43 with 11 of them being offensive. They also recorded 23 dimes for this game while having 12 steals and 3 rejections. Pertaining to the defense, San Antonio allowed the other team to go 44.0% from the floor on 40 out of 91. Houston recorded 23 assists and 12 steals in this contest. In addition, the Rockets collected 51 rebounds (11 offensive, 40 defensive) and added 8 blocks. Houston finished shooting 65.4% from the free throw line by burying 17 of 26 tries. They also converted 15 out of their 45 attempts from downtown.

Houston had a mark of 44-28 last season. The Rockets committed 21.8 personal fouls every game and they connected on 79.1% from the free throw line. They dished out assists 21.6 times per game (29th in the league) and they coughed up possession 14.7 times per contest. Houston scored 8,482 pts over the course of last season (117.8 per game) and they snagged 44.3 rebounds per contest. As an offensive team, the Rockets connected on 45.1% from the floor, which ranked them 22nd in the league. The Rockets on defense were ranked 23rd in the NBA in points given up per game with 114.8. The Houston defense gave up 34.9% on shots from beyond the arc (880 of 2,522) and opponents knocked down 76.1% of their shots from the free throw line. They forced 16.2 TO's per game and allowed teams to shoot 46.2% from the field (14th in the league). They conceded 25.3 assists and 47.9 rebounds per game, which was ranked 23rd and 30th in those defensive categories.

The last time they took the hardwood in the preseason, the Houston Rockets went home defeated by a final of 112-98 when they faced the San Antonio Spurs. The Rockets were able to pull down 40 defensive boards and 11 offensive rebounds for a total of 51 for this game. They also rejected 8 shots while earning 12 steals for this contest. The Spurs committed 14 personal fouls in this contest which got the Rockets to the charity stripe for 26 attempts. They were able to bury 17 of the free throw tries for a rate of 65.4%. In regard to shots from downtown, Houston converted 15 of their 45 attempts (33.3%). In all, the Rockets walked away from this one shooting 40 for 91 from the field which gave them a percentage of 44.0%. The Rockets allowed the Spurs to convert 36 of their 84 attempts from the field which had them at 42.9% in this contest. They finished 32.3% from distance by going 10 out of 31 and ended up shooting 16 of 27 from the free throw line (59.3%). In the matter of how they attacked the glass, Houston permitted San Antonio to collect 43 overall (11 on the offensive glass).

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take San Antonio (-2.5)

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