The Rockets and Warriors will play Game 2 of their first round series in Houston on Wednesday. In Game 1, the Warriors defeated the Rockets 95-85. On DraftKings Sportsbook, Houston is favored by 3.5 points and this game carries a total of 204 points.
Below, I break down the Game 2 matchup between the Rockets and the Warriors and give a pick for the game via DraftKings Sportsbook.
Rockets vs. Warriors preview, prediction
The Warriors went into Houston and stole home court for this series with the 10-point road victory over the Rockets in Game 1 this past Sunday. It was a rather convincing win for Golden State, as it led by as many as 23 points and it never trailed after about midway through the second quarter. While Houston outrebounded the Warriors 52-36, which was expected given the Rockets are the much bigger team, Golden State led in every other major category.
As per usual, Stephen Curry led the Warriors with 31 points and Jimmy Butler was also excellent with 25 points, seven rebounds, six assists and five steals. Golden State is now 4-2 against the Rockets this season and the Warriors are 25-7 with Butler active since trading for the veteran at the deadline in February. Since the All-Star break, Golden State has proven that it is legitimate title contender, with the team ranking first in defensive rating and third in net rating, only trailing the Thunder and the defending Boston Celtics, who are the two teams that carry the best odds to win the NBA championship on DraftKings Sportsbook.
One of the glaring issues for the Rockets in their Game 1 home loss to the Warriors was the play of Jalen Green. The guard was held to only seven points and went 3-of-15 from the field, which was a continuation of what we saw from Green against the Warriors in the regular season. The former lottery pick has played Golden State six times this season and he is only averaging 12.6 PPG in those matchups, which is a huge downgrade from the 21 PPG Green is averaging this season. The Warriors clearly are the shooting guard’s kryptonite and if Green can’t figure out how to navigate Golden State’s defense, the Rockets are in big trouble. Green leads Houston in scoring and usage rate this season, and the Rockets are 13-13 when he scores 15 points or less.
With Green struggling in Game 1, Alperen Sengun stepped up and scored 26 points. That being said, this felt like an outlier performance, as the big man has also struggled against Golden State this season, averaging only 17.0 PPG in six matchups. Sengun is an inconsistent scorer and expecting him to approach 30 points again in Game 2 is unreasonable against this Warriors defense that is the top-rated unit in the NBA since the All-Star break. Outside of Sengun, no other Rocket in Game 1 scored more than 11 points. To bounce back in Game 2, Houston will need one huge performance or a few strong performances from its secondary scorers, like Fred VanVleet or Amen Thompson. Slowing down Curry is also a must if the Rockets want to even this series, which is something we saw Houston do when these clubs met on April 6th. In that win for the Rockets, Curry finished with a season-low three points. Unfortunately for Houston, this was an extremely rare occasion for the sharpshooter and the Rockets containing Curry like that in Game 2 feels like a pipe dream.
Rockets vs. Warriors pick, best bet
The Warriors truly have been one of the best teams in the NBA over the last few months and it’s hard to pick against them right now. Golden State just has so much more playoff experience than this Rockets team and while Houston will be fired up to rebound on its home floor tonight, the Warriors should bring them back down to reality and take the 2-0 series lead. Golden State should have been favored for this contest and it is a must-bet to win on the Moneyline at a +136 price on DraftKings Sportsbook.
