Houston Rockets vs Oklahoma City Thunder 02/01/2021 NBA Odds, Preview and Prediction

The Houston Rockets head to the Chesapeake Energy Arena to take on the Oklahoma City Thunder on Monday, February 1, 2021.

The Rockets head to OKC carrying a five-game winning streak and they are playing their best basketball of the season. Houston is 6-3 since trading James Harden and the new guys led by Christian Wood, Victor Oladipo, and John Wall have been playing well lately. On the other hand, the Thunder have struggled to play at home with just one victory in seven home games. The Thunder have dropped four out of their last six contests and are coming off a blowout loss to the Brooklyn Nets last Friday.

Houston Rockets

The Houston Rockets have climbed back to the .500 mark. Following their win over the Pelicans on Saturday night, the Rockets are now 9-9 on the season. Houston has won its last five games and is 6-3 since James Harden’s departure. The Rockets, however, have struggled on the road as of late, winning just five of their last 16 games away from the Toyota Center.

Christian Wood leads Houston with 23.6 points, 10.7 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks per game. Victor Oladipo is putting up 22.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game while John Wall is averaging 17.8 points and 5.8 assists per game this season. Eric Gordon is the fourth player scoring in double figures at 17.0 points while DeMarcus Cousins is scoring 8.3 points while grabbing 7.3 rebounds per game.

Houston is ranked 18th in scoring at 111.0 points per game. The Rockets are 16th in rebounding at 44.2 boards grabbed per contest and are 24th in passing at 23.0 assists per game. They have the 9th best scoring defense in the league at 109.6 points per game allowed.

OKC Thunder

The OKC Thunder are 8-10 on the season and they are in fourth place in the Northwest Division, six games behind the division-leading Utah Jazz. The Thunder have dropped four out of their last six games played and saw their two-game winning streak snapped by the Brooklyn Nets last Friday, 147-125.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads the team in scoring at 21.9 points per game. SGA is also OKC’s assists leader at 6.4 dimes per contest. Lugen Dortz is their second-leading scorer at 12.5 points per game while veteran big man Al Horford is contributing 12.5 points and 7.4 boards per contest. George Hill, Hamidou Diallo, and Darius Bazley are also scoring in twin digits for OKC.

OKC has the 25th ranked offense in the NBA at 107.3 points per game scored. They are grabbing 43.8 boards grabbed per contest and are 27th in passing at 22.4 assists per game. The Thunder have the 7th worst scoring defense in the league at 114.3 points per game allowed.

Who Wins?

The Rockets are 5-0 SU in their last five games played. Houston is 5-11 SU in their last 16 games played on the road. The Thunder are 3-6 SU in their last nine games played. Oklahoma City is 1-6 SU in their last seven games played at home, and 3-8 SU in their last 11 games played against the Western Conference. Head to head, these teams have split their last 10 meetings but the Rockets have won two out of the last three.

Houston has been rolling with five straight wins. They are 6-3 since swapping James Harden for Victor Oladipo. Oladipo has scored at least 20 points in five out of his six games with the Rockets.

Oklahoma City has dropped four of six and is coming off a 22-point shellacking at the hands of the Brooklyn Nets. The Thunder have lost six out of their first seven home games this season and gave up 147 points against the Nets the last time out. Shai-Gilgeous Alexander is averaging 21.9 points per game and is dishing off 6.4 dimes per contest.

The Rockets have been rolling while the Thunder have been struggling, including at home. It’s clear that Houston is playing much better as a team right now and are coming off a 126-point game against the Pelicans. OKC is 24th in scoring defense and may not have the defense to contain the Rockets’ scorers. Give me the road team to pick up their sixth straight win.

Prediction: Houston Rockets

Other Bets to Make

Houston is 4-1 ATS in their last five games played. The Rockets are 5-4 ATS in their last nine games played, and 1-4 ATS in their last five games against the Northwest division. Oklahoma City is 10-8 ATS in 18 games played this season. The Thunder are 2-5 ATS in seven home games played this season, and 4-11 ATS in their last 15 February games. Head to head, the Thunder are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games played against the Rockets. OKC is also 6-0 ATS in their last six home games against Houston.

These are two teams trending in opposite directions. Houston has won five in a row while the Thunder have won twice in their last six games played. Defensively, the Rockets are ranked third in the entire NBA in adjusted defensive efficiency while the Thunder are just 23rd in that department. With the better defense, I expect the Rockets to cover this small spread. Three out of the Rockets’ last four wins have been by double digits.

Prediction: Rockets -5

The total has gone under in 11 out of the last 15 games played by the Rockets. Houston has seen the total go under in eight out of their last 10 games against the Western Conference. The over is 6-3-1 in OKC’s last 10 games played. The total has gone under in five of OKC’s last six games played against the Southwest Division but the over is 5-2 in the Thunder’s last seven Monday games. Head to head, the under is 6-4 in the last 10 meetings between these two teams.

Although the Rockets have started to find their groove in the post-Harden era, both these teams are in the bottom 10 in the league in offensive efficiency with OKC at 26th and Houston at 21st. The Rockets are also one of the more turnover-prone teams in the league at 26th in that department while the Thunder are 14th so we should see some back and forth action without shot attempts. Houston has scored 107 or fewer points in four out of their last six games played while the Thunder have scored 106 or fewer in four out of their last six games as well. Give me the under.

Prediction: Under 223

Place Your Bets Now!