NBA: Houston Rockets VS Boston Celtics Pick and Predictions 12/27/2022

Game: 7:10 PM ET,  Tuesday, December 27th, 2022

Venue: TD Garden, Boston, Massachusetts

TV:  NBA League Pass

Rockets: 10-23, 15th pace Western Conference

Celtics: 24-10, 1st place Eastern Conference

BetMGM:  Point Spread:  Celtics -14.5, O/U 229.5

PointsBet: Point Spread: Celtics -14.5, O/U 229.5

Fanduel: Point Spread: Celtics -14.5, O/U 229.5

Rockets: PF Jabari Smith JR, SF Eric Gordon, C Alperen Sengun PG Kevin Porter JR, SG Jalen Green

Celtics: PF Jayson Tatum, SF Jaylen Brown, C Al Horford, SG Derrick White, PG Marcus Smart

An NBA Battle of the best in the East and the worst in the West.  It’s a mismatch of historic proportions.  The rub is of course the point spread.  The point spread is what makes any NBA game tricky to bet.  If you want a great betting opportunity… you could simply bet the Celtics on the moneyline and make pennies on your dollars… Or we can go through the numbers and find where the spread should be.  The Houston Rockets are the worst team in the West and if it weren’t for the Detroit Pistons they would be the worst team in the league.  The Rockets DO NOT WANT TO WIN… not this year.. Not during the Victor Wembanyama year… Not during the best draft lottery since LeBron!  That is why they have held onto Eric Gordon… Eric Gordon is a small 2-guard who has been forced to play Small Forward for the Rockets for the last two seasons.  The result is a team with a constant defensive weakness that will prevent them from winning games unless they get an accidental win out of their super young guys.  The Boston Celtics are a real team… even with key pieces missing in action because of injury… the Celtics are still deep and talented and destined for postseason noise.

The Houston Rockets actually won their last game over the Chicago Bulls 133-118… It lifted them to 4 wins over their last ten games.  They are in last place for a reason.  Lots of young guys who will be important 2-3 years from now… but not yet ready to overcome the unbalanced roster.  Head Coach Stephen Silas does not have the job to get wins… He has the job to develop children into men.  In their win over the Bulls the Rockets got 36 points, 7 rebounds, and 9 assists from PG Kevin Porter JR who is a key piece in the longstanding rebuild.  They also got 25 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists from Center Alperen Sengun… Sengun is a huge surprise and has LOTS of upside… If the team gets the #1 pick?... He will be traded in a New York Minute.  They also got 24 points from SG Jalen Green… Jalen was drafted to be the next Rocket’s star and may just top out asd their 3rd or 4th best player… but he still is very athletic.

The Boston Celtics are in the process of righting the ship.  Odd for a first place team to have to do that… but the Celtics had a recent spate where they lost 5 of six games.  It coincided with the reality that they are missing practically every big man on the roster.  However they have won their last 2 games in a row (coinciding with a return of Al Horford to a healthy amount of minutes at Center instead of Blake Griffin).  They last beat the Milwaukee Bucks on Christmas Day… a game they will draw from in the playoffs no doubt!  They won 139-118 over the Bucks while getting 41 points from Jayson Tatum and 29 points from Jaylen Brown. Jayson and Jalen are the team’s pure all-star guys. PG Marcus Smart was quiet on offense with only 6 points 3 rebounds and 8 assists… but Marcus is a bulldog on defense.  He holds down the fort whenever it is needed. Together the Celtics held Giannis to 27 points… That may seem like a lot for other stars,,, but for Giannis it means a loss for the Bucks.

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HOU: 10-23, 17-15-1 ATS, 17-16 O/U, 4-13 in road games.

BOS: 24-10, 19-14-1 ATS, 18-15-1 O/U, 13-5 in home games.

The Rockets are 28th in scoring with 110.2 points per game, 4th in rebounds with 46.8 per game, 30th in AST/TO ratio with 1.3, and 16th in blocked shots with 4.8 per game.

The Celtics are 1st in scoring with 118.7 points per game, 11th in rebounds with 43.6 per game, 2nd in AST/TO ratio with 1.9 per game, 9th in blocked shots with 5.1 per game.

Our prediction for Tuesday, December 27th is…. Celtics 125 - Rockets 104

Bet on the Celtics to cover the spread and cover whatever the spread ends up being.  The reason is simple teamwork and defensive lapses.  The Celtics have all of one and none of the other… The Rockets have none of one and all of the other.  The Rockets have athletes but when defense comes into the equation they get blown out completely.  For the Celtics this will be a cake walk.  Expect Tatum to only have to play for 35 minutes.

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Boston is 2-0 ATS versus Rockets in Boston the last 3 seasons.

The Rockets are 0-2 ATS this season as a road underdog of 12.5 to 18 points.

The Celtics are 10-2 ATS off a home win this season.

Rockets: PG Kevin Porter JR.  Kevin is really coming into his own.  The excitement behind him and for him is real.  The kid can play offensively at a high level.  What we need to see from here on out isn’t more offense… It’s more leadership and more defense.  When he has those elements he will be a perennial all-star.

Celtics:  PG Marcus Smart.  Marcus affects the game all the time.  He can score, he can pass and he can shut down some smart mouth guard that wasn’t expecting so much muscle and determination.  The Celtics don’t have a Big Two… They have a BIG THREE!  Marcus should never be overlooked or unheralded just because Tatum and Brown turn in gaudy scoring totals.

Rockets: Stephen “babysitter’s club” Silas

Celtics: Joe “I just got here” Mazzula