Sacramento Kings vs. Houston Rockets: Preview, Odds, Prediction (Dec 31)

The Sacramento Kings are the most pleasant surprise in these few days since the league started. On the other side, the Houston Rockets are going through one very turbulent period. James Harden isn’t willing to stay in Texas, and on the other side, several players are out due to a COVID-19 protocol violation. On top of that, they are without a win so far. The game takes place at Toyota Center, but that won’t be a big factor as usual due to the attendance restrictions.

Preview

Sacramento Kings +155 (3-1) defeated the Nuggets twice and have 1-1 against the Suns. The fans hope to finally see them in the playoffs, after 14 years of waiting, and the start of the season gives them every right for that. After two, three years of waiting for all the youngsters to fit in, they should have some chemistry and experience to become a playoff contender in the West.

The @SacramentoKings move to 3-1 behind 24 PTS, 9 AST from De'Aaron Fox! #KiaTipOff20 pic.twitter.com/uZdfPrDw0s

— NBA (@NBA) December 30, 2020

Right now, the Kings have six players with 10 or more points, which is their trademark, but one name stands above all others. De’Aaron Fox posts 20.3 points with 6.8 boards and one steal and block per game, playing superbly.

Buddy Hield is right behind with 16.3 points, while Harrison Barnes has his stats column filled, 13.8 points, 8.3 boards, 3.9 assists. This is the best situation with the Kings, as they have several players of demolishing you at any moment of the match.

Houston Rockets -175 (0-2) lost against the Portland Trail Blazers and the Denver Nuggets in the campaign’s opening two matches. Both of these games were on the road. The one against the Trail Blazers saw them suffering a defeat after overtime, mostly due to Portland’s superb three-point shooting in the key moments of the event.

CHRISTIAN WOOD's impressive 1st game with the Rockets

31 PTS (14/22 FG) & 13 REBpic.twitter.com/3KqwF7s08R

— Ballislife.com (@Ballislife) December 27, 2020

Against the Nuggets, they didn’t stand too many chances, as boys from Mile High held everything in their hands pretty firmly throughout the entire contest.

Even with 15 pounds more, James Harden is still an enigma for the rivals, and the Beard averaged 39 points in the first two games. We need to say that he also had 17 assists against the Trail Blazers, his personal best. The guy who was a surprise is Christian Wood. We knew that he is a good player, but the explosion in the first two games was stunning. He currently shoots 57.8% from downtown.

Latest News

John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins, Ben McLemore, Kenyon Martin Jr., and Eric Gordon are out for this game.

The Kings have no injured or suspended players.

Head to Head Matches

Sacramento won the first game last year in Houston (Nemanja Bjelica’s buzzer-beating three), but lost the next two, with the latest one being in the Orlando bubble.

Prediction

Right now, the limit for the total number of points is 228. Knowing that these two crews like fast-paced basketball with lots of three-point attempts and without some notable defense, seeing more points than proposed is realistic. This matchup should be a definition of a run-and-gun basketball, which is why we strongly suggest to bet on Over, without hesitating too much.