Houston Rockets vs Oklahoma City Thunder Prediction, 2/1/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Houston Rockets vs Oklahoma City Thunder

Date: Monday, February 1, 2021

Location: Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City, OK

TV: Fox Sports Oklahoma

Odds/Point Spread: Houston (-5.5)

The Houston Rockets (9-9) go to Chesapeake Energy Arena on Monday where they'll take on the Oklahoma City Thunder (8-10). Oklahoma City opens this contest as 5.5-point underdogs. The over/under opens at 222.

The Houston Rockets stepped onto the hardwood against the New Orleans Pelicans and walked away with a win by a score of 126-112 in their last contest. Houston wrapped up the contest having earned a 48.9% field goal percentage (45 of 92) and made 20 of 46 shots from 3-point land. From the free throw line, the Rockets converted 16 of their 20 tries for a rate of 80.0%. When discussing grabbing rebounds, they collected a total of 45 with 7 of them being of the offensive sort. They also dished out 32 assists in this game in addition to having 8 steals and 5 blocks. In regard to defense, Houston allowed their opponent to shoot 45.1% from the field on 41 out of 91 shooting. New Orleans dished out 27 assists and had 11 steals in the game. In addition, the Pelicans had 48 rebounds (10 offensive, 38 defensive) and got 7 blocked shots. New Orleans shot 62.1% from the free throw line by making 18 of their 29 attempts. They also knocked down 12 out of their 41 attempts from long range.

Christian Wood is a player who was a factor for the game. He recorded 27 points on 11 out of 13 shooting. He saw the court for 27:02 minutes and also grabbed 9 rebounds. Wood finished the contest at 84.6% from the field and also recorded 2 dimes. One more player that was a contributor in this game for the Rockets was Victor Oladipo. He grabbed 6 rebounds and accounted for 7 assists. He ended up shooting 50.0% from the floor in this contest by going 7-of-14 (20 points). When the game finished, Oladipo saw the court for 24:42 minutes.

Houston will play this contest with a win-loss mark of 9-9 so far this season. They average 111.0 pts per game (18th in basketball) while shooting 45.8% from the field. The Rockets are connecting on 35.4% from downtown (245 of 693) and 75.2% from the free throw line. As a team, Houston is snagging 44.2 boards per contest and has tallied 414 dimes so far this year, which has them ranked 25th in the league in terms of passing. They are turning it over 15.7 times per contest and as a squad are committing 20.4 fouls per game. When they are on defense, the Rockets are able to force 15.6 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 20.0 personal fouls. The Rockets defense is allowing a field goal percentage of 44.8% (281 of 360) and they concede 47.3 boards per game as a group. They currently rank 3rd in the league in giving up assists to the opposition with 395 relinquished so far this season. They surrender 35.0% on shots from beyond the perimeter and they are ranked 9th in the NBA in PPG allowed (109.6).

When they last stepped on the court, the Oklahoma City Thunder took a loss by a final score of 147-125 when they faced the Brooklyn Nets. The Thunder were able to pull down 30 defensive boards and 6 offensive rebounds totaling 36 for this game. They also blocked 4 shots while getting 4 steals for this game. The Nets committed 25 personal fouls for the matchup which took the Thunder to the free throw line for 34 tries. They were able to convert 29 of the free throw tries for a rate of 85.3%. When talking about 3-pointers, Oklahoma City converted 16 out of their 38 attempts (42.1%). When the final whistle was blown, the Thunder finished shooting 40 for 86 from the field which gave them a rate of 46.5%. The Thunder allowed the Nets to make 57 of 100 attempts from the floor which gave them a percentage of 57.0% for the contest. They shot 42.2% from beyond the perimeter by hitting 19 of 45 and finished the game at 14 out of 16 from the free throw line (87.5%). In reference to rebounding, Oklahoma City allowed Brooklyn to pull down 50 in all (10 on the offensive glass).

Théo Maledon ended up being a major contributor for the Thunder for the contest. He converted 8 of 9 for the matchup giving him a field goal percentage of 88.9%, which earned him 24 points. Maledon snagged 3 rebounds in his 33:25 mins of time on the court and tallied 3 dimes for the contest. An additional guy that was important for Oklahoma City was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He ended up finishing with 24 points in his 31:09 mins on the court by way of 7 of 10 from the floor in this game. Gilgeous-Alexander walked away from this one going 70.0% from the floor while also collecting 5 assists and 4 rebounds.

Oklahoma City has a record of 8-10 on the campaign. On the offensive side of the ball, the Thunder are shooting 45.2% from the floor, which ranks them 20th in the league. Oklahoma City has tallied 1,931 pts for the year (107.3 per game) and they average 43.8 rebounds per contest. Their rate of earning assists is at 22.4 times per contest (27th in the league) and they turn it over 14.1 times per contest. The Thunder have committed 18.6 personal fouls every game while shooting 71.9% from the free throw line. The Thunder are ranked 24th in the NBA in points given up per game with 114.3. They relinquish 24.8 dimes and 49.6 boards per contest, which is 15th and 30th in the league. The Oklahoma City defense allows 35.3% on shots from beyond the arc (229 of 649) and their opposition makes 76.6% of their shots from the free throw line. They are able to force 12.4 TO's per game and have let teams shoot 46.4% from the field (19th in the NBA).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Houston (-5.5)

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