Houston Rockets vs. Toronto Raptors Spread: NBA Odds, Prediction
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Charlie Grant
Since the final buzzer went last June, basketball fans have been waiting a fourth edition of Warriors-Cavaliers in this year’s NBA Finals. But it’s two other teams in the penthouse positions on the league standings page and those two sides play for a second time this season when the Houston Rockets visit the Toronto Raptors on Friday.
NBA Point Spread and Betting Analysis
The Rockets come to town riding a 17-game winning streak and are a league best 51-13 straight up. They are 6-1 against the spread over their last seven games and 34-29-1 ATS overall.
Toronto won a nail-biter against the Pistons in Detroit on Wednesday night but failed to cover as a 5.5-point favorite. The Raptors are 6-0 in their last six games and 47-17 on the season. They’ve covered the spread in four of their last six games and in 36 of their 64 contests overall.
The Raptors took down the Rockets 129-113 in Houston back in November in the only other meeting between the two clubs this season. The over is 5-0 in the last five matchups between the Raptors and Rockets.
Houston Rockets
It’s hard to talk about the Rockets and not gush over the play of MVP frontrunner James Harden. He’s leading the league in scoring, free throw attempts, 3-point attempts and is third in assists. It’s odd now to think there was concern in the offseason of how Harden would mesh with new addition Chris Paul. The Rockets are 34-1 SU this season in games where Harden, Paul and center Clint Capela all play.
Toronto Raptors
Critics of the Raptors rightly point out that their offense can become predictable in the late stages of close games. Clear out and let team leading scorer DeMar DeRozan is normally Plan A, B and C. But DeRozan and the Raptors showed against the Pistons that they have more up their sleeves this campaign. DeRozan produced 31 points and six assists after halftime and set up Fred VanVleet’s game-winning shot.
