As the rest of the NBA comes out of the All-Star break on Friday night, the clear marquee matchup is from Houston as the Rockets put the NBA’s best record on the line against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Houston also has won the past 10 at home in this series and is an NBA odds favorite for No. 11.
Houston swingman Trevor Ariza (hamstring) returned to practice on Wednesday, and he will play on Friday against the Wolves. He’s been working out full speed for at least a week. Ariza suffered his injury on Jan. 28. His return means Luc Mbah a Moute, P.J. Tucker and Gerald Green will lose minutes.
Houston is 28-1 when Clint Capela, Harden, and Chris Paul play together (first loss at New Orleans on 1/26) and 16-12 when they don’t. Houston is 17-1 over the past 18 games, including 10 straight wins, after going 2-7 the nine games prior.
The Rockets have won nine straight at home after losing three of the previous four at Toyota Center. Houston also won nine straight at home from 11/5-12/18 (longest streak since 11 games from 1/28-3/27/14).
How to Bet Timberwolves at Rockets NBA Odds & Game Info – February 23rd
When: Friday, 8 PM ET Where: Toyota Center, Houston TV: ESPN Stream: WatchESPN Radio: WCCO-AM 830 (Minnesota) / 790 AM (Houston) NBA Odds: Rockets -7 (226.5)21 games in 47 days. The Wolves are looking to close out the regular season strong » https://t.co/xw4kzcQyOp pic.twitter.com/X6KxQkW8U2
— Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) February 22, 2018
Season Series
Houston leads 2-0, winning both in blowouts. On Jan. 18 in Houston, the Rockets won 116-98. Eric Gordon tallied 30 points, hitting seven of Houston’s 17 3-pointers, and Chris Paul added 19 points and nine assists. Jimmy Butler finished with 23 points and Karl-Anthony Towns added 22 points, 16 rebounds and five blocks for Minnesota, which lost for the 10th consecutive time in Houston. On Feb. 13 in Minnesota, the Rockets rolled 126-108. James Harden had 34 points and 13 assists, teaming with Ryan Anderson to hit seven of Houston’s 10 fourth-quarter 3-pointers. Towns collected a season-high 35 points and 12 rebounds for Minnesota while Jeff Teague added 25 points and eight assists. Houston has won 16 of the past 18 meetings overall. The Rockets have scored 100+ points in each of the past 15 meetings, including at least 120 six times. The 10-game home winning streak is Houston’s longest-ever in the series.Why Bet on Minnesota?
The Wolves had two All-Stars, Jimmy Butler and Karl-Anthony Towns. However, Butler begged out of actually play in last Sunday night’s game. Butler and the Wolves had to play in the final NBA game before the break and he logged 41 minutes in a comeback victory over Lakers. Butler leads the NBA in minutes played. “This Timberwolves season is very, very important to me,” Butler said after the game. In that 119-111 win over the Lakers last Thursday, Towns posted his league-leading 51st double-double with 10 points and 19 boards to go with four assists and two blocks in 32 minutes. That low-scoring game aside, Towns has been rolling this month, averaging 25.7 points per game with a shooting line of 65/54/94. Minnesota capped a three-game homestand by rallying from 15 points down to win that game. It was the Wolves’ fifth triumph this year when trailing after three quarters (5-15) and the eighth time they’ve erased a double-figure deficit to win (8-13). Meanwhile, the Timberwolves would potentially be open to buying out the remainder of Shabazz Muhammad’s contract, according to owner Glen Taylor. Muhammad reportedly was hoping to be waived or traded prior to the deadline. However, he’s still with the Wolves but has fallen out of the rotation. Minnesota’s 36-25 record equals the 5th-best 60-game start in franchise history (44-17 in 2003-04, 40-21 in 2002-03, 40-21 in 2001-02, 37-24 in 2000-01, 36-25 in 1999-2000). The Wolves are percentage points behind San Antonio (35-24) in the chase for the West’s #3 seed while their Northwest Division lead is two games over Oklahoma City (33-26).Team Statistics
Offense:- Average Score For: 109.74
- Field Goals: 47.97%
- Three Points: 35.57%
- Free Throws: 80.24%
- Rebounds: 41.70
- Average Score Against: 106.80
- Field Goals: 47.82%
- Three Points: 36.84%
- Free Throws: 77.92%
- Rebounds: 41.33
Why Bet on Houston?
The Rockets (44-13) won their 10th straight game right before the break, 100-91 over Sacramento. James Harden scored 28 points with nine rebounds and nine assists. Joe Johnson scored nine points with three rebounds, one steal and one 3-pointer in 31 minutes. He had some rust in his first game as a Rocket after being signed off waivers. Harden has scored at least 27 points in each of the past six games, marking his third six-game streak doing so this season after doing so once prior in his career (7 games from 2/6-2/27/16). He leads NBA in scoring (31.3 ppg), second in assists (9.0 apg), and is first in 3FGM (206).
Houston swingman Trevor Ariza (hamstring) returned to practice on Wednesday, and he will play on Friday against the Wolves. He’s been working out full speed for at least a week. Ariza suffered his injury on Jan. 28. His return means Luc Mbah a Moute, P.J. Tucker and Gerald Green will lose minutes.
Houston is 28-1 when Clint Capela, Harden, and Chris Paul play together (first loss at New Orleans on 1/26) and 16-12 when they don’t. Houston is 17-1 over the past 18 games, including 10 straight wins, after going 2-7 the nine games prior.
The Rockets have won nine straight at home after losing three of the previous four at Toyota Center. Houston also won nine straight at home from 11/5-12/18 (longest streak since 11 games from 1/28-3/27/14).
Team Statistics
Offense:- Average Score For: 114.11
- Field Goals: 46.24%
- Three Points: 36.58%
- Free Throws: 78.70%
- Rebounds: 43.60
- Average Score Against: 105.44
- Field Goals: 46.68%
- Three Points: 36.33%
- Free Throws: 75.61%
- Rebounds: 41.39
Latest NBA Odds Trends
- Minnesota is 0-5 ATS in the last 5 games
- Minnesota is 0-5 SU in the last 5 games on the road
- The total went OVER in 5 of Minnesota’s last 5 games
- Houston is 1-5 ATS in the last 6 games at home
- Houston is 5-0 SU in the last 5 games
- The total went OVER in 4 of Houston’s last 6 games
