Pick against the spread, best player prop for Kings vs. Rockets on Saturday

The Houston Rockets got their full lineup in there for the first time all season on Thursday against the Sacramento Kings. Houston picked up its first win of the season in the process behind 33 points and 8 assists from James Harden. John Wall had 22 points and 9 assists while Christian Wood scored 21 points and 12 rebounds to stay hot. This Rockets team could end up being a problem in the West if things start to come together. It seems all those reports of turmoil on the team may have been overblown. They’ll look to get even on the season on the second leg of a back-to-back set with the Kings on Saturday.

Sacramento Kings vs. Houston Rockets, 5:00 p.m. ET NBATV

Pick ATS: Kings +5

The first game in the home-and-home, the Rockets pulled out a narrow victory 122-119 over the Kings. Both games are in Houston but I don’t think that matters with no fans. So the Kings getting 5 points seems like a good number given the type of basketball they’ve played so far this season. Sacramento has beat Denver twice and Phoenix once, so three quality wins.

The only problem is Tyrese Haliburton will be out and the Kings will have a weaker back court. That back court still includes De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield. I think Sac Town will realize it needs to do better on Christian Wood. If they can contain the big man, Harden and Wall will just chuck and neither player is efficient.

Player Prop: John Wall O3.5 rebounds (-117)

Wall made his Rockets debut on Thursday and played 37 minutes. He scored 22 points, had 9 assists and pulled down 6 rebounds. Unless something comes out before the game, we should expect Wall to get around the same amount of minutes. If that’s the case, getting to 4 rebounds doesn’t seem like a stretch. It’s also the same opponent, so another high-scoring game with the pace up could also be on the table.

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