New York Knicks vs Houston Rockets Prediction, 12/31/2022 Preview and Pick

Game: New York Knicks vs Houston Rockets

Date: Saturday, December 31, 2022

Location: Toyota Center in Houston, TX

TV: AT&T Sportsnet Southwest

Odds/Point Spread: New York (-6)

The Houston Rockets host the New York Knicks at Toyota Center on Saturday. New York opens as 6-point favorites. The total is 224.

The Knicks faced off with the Spurs and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 122-115 in their last game. Regarding fouls, the Knicks walked away with 21 while the Spurs totaled 23 fouls. They converted 11 out of their 28 shots from 3-point range. San Antonio ended up going 72.4% when shooting free throws by knocking down 21 of their 29 attempts. In addition, San Antonio grabbed 48 boards (14 offensive, 34 defensive) and earned 2 rejections. San Antonio recorded 25 assists and had 5 steals for the game. Regarding defense, New York allowed the other team to shoot 51.1% from the floor on 45 out of 88 shooting. They also distributed 20 assists for this contest while forcing the other team into 11 turnovers and earning 7 steals. In terms of grabbing rebounds, they earned 38 with 13 of them being offensive. At the charity stripe, the Knicks converted 24 of their 31 shots for a percentage of 77.4%. New York ended having earned a 42.2% FG percentage (38 of 90) and converted 15 of their 41 shots from beyond the perimeter.

Julius Randle is a player who was important in the matchup. Randle finished the game shooting 51.9% from the floor and totaled 7 dimes. He saw the court for 43 mins and also grabbed 11 rebounds. He was able to score 41 points on 14 of 27 shooting.

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New York steps onto the court with a mark of 18-17 for the campaign. They have an average of 114.6 points per outing (12th in the NBA) while going 45.9% from the field. The Knicks are hitting 33.8% on 3-point shots (409 of 1,209) and 78.4% from the charity stripe. As a team, New York is grabbing 47.4 boards per contest and has 823 assists on the year, which is 22nd in basketball in terms of passing the ball. They turn the ball over 13.9 times per contest and as a team they commit 21.2 fouls every game.

When they are on the defensive end, the Knicks are forcing their opponents into 13.5 turnovers per contest while drawing 21.3 fouls. They are currently ranked 15th in the league in allowing assists with 869 relinquished so far this season. The Knicks are giving up a field goal percentage of 45.4% (1,417 of 3,122) and they concede 43.9 rebounds per game as a team. They give up 34.2% on shots from downtown while they are 13th in basketball in PPG allowed (112.5).

When they last stepped on the court, the Rockets took a defeat with a final score of 129-114 against the Mavericks. The Rockets were able to snag 36 defensive boards and 12 offensive boards totaling 48 for the contest. They coughed up the ball 12 times, while recording 5 steals for this game. The Mavericks committed 26 fouls for the game which got the Rockets to the free throw line for 37 tries. They were able to make 26 of them for a rate of 70.3%. When discussing shooting from downtown, Houston made 12 of 34 attempts (35.3%). When the final whistle blew, the Rockets finished shooting 38 for 86 from the floor which gave them a percentage of 44.2%. The Rockets allowed the Mavericks to convert 47 of their 91 tries from the floor which gave them a rate of 51.6% for the contest. They finished the game shooting 40.0% from three-point range via 18 out of 45 and ended up going 17 of 25 from the free throw line (68.0%). In reference to attacking the glass, Houston permitted Dallas to collect 44 overall (6 offensive).

Jalen Green ended up being important for the Rockets in this game. Green tallied 23 points in his 32 mins of playing time and had 4 dimes for the contest. He converted 7 of 15 in this game for a rate of 46.7%, and added 4 rebounds.

Houston has a record of 10-24 on the year. On the offensive side of the court, the Rockets are hitting on 44.5% from the floor, which is 29th in the league. Houston has accounted for 3,737 points so far this season (109.9 per contest) and they average 46.9 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 21.7 times per game (30th in the league) and they are turning it over 17.1 times per contest. The Rockets commit 20.3 personal fouls every game and they go 77.6% from the charity stripe.

The Houston defense gives up 36.4% on 3-pointers (481 of 1,320) and their opposition makes 77.7% of their shots from the charity stripe. They have surrendered 25.7 assists and 41.7 rebounds per game, which ranks 21st and 5th in the league. The Rockets are ranked 21st in the league in PPG allowed with 115.7. They are forcing 14.6 TO's every game and allow teams to shoot 47.5% from the floor (20th in basketball).

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take New York (-6)

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