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The Beard is back in Houston! This will be the first game James Harden plays back in Houston since being dealt to the Brooklyn Nets. This is also the first time Harden will face his old teammates since the trade. We all know how that saga ended and things did not go over well with players like John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins. We don’t even know if both of them will play on Wednesday night. That’s the big question mark right now: Who will play on both sides? There are a lot of injuries floating around.
Nets vs. Rockets, 7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN
Pick ATS: Nets -9.5
The Nets have been the hottest team in the NBA, winning nine of their past 10 games entering their final contest before the break. Six of those wins have been by double digits and a few others have been by at least 9 points. Depending on what the injury report looks like, the Nets should take care of the Houston Rockets pretty easily on the road. You’ve got a motivated Harden taking on a team that just lost by nearly 50 points to the Memphis Grizzlies. Even if the Nets sit Kyrie Irving to rest, Harden will want to stick it to his former team. All-in on the narrative, baby!
Player Prop: James Harden O48.5 Pts + Rebs + Asts (-115)
Again, we’re all-in on the narrative that Harden will show off in his first game back in Houston. My feeling is the Nets could get some guys additional rest and Harden is really only coming off the bench in the All-Star Game on Sunday. He hasn’t needed to take games off and I don’t see why Brooklyn would start now. Narrative aside, Harden has scored at least 29 points in four of five games and I think he gets over the 30 threshold tonight. The Beard also has 10+ assists in 10 of the past 14 games.
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