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Fireworks will be in full display when crosstown rivals Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets clash this Thursday at American Airlines Center.
The Mavericks head into this game in high spirits following a 120-114 comeback victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves while the Rockets are fresh off a 106-101 triumph against the San Antonio Spurs.
Will the Rockets change the narrative and draw first blood in this highly-anticipated matchup or will the Mavericks continue its mastery over the former?
That remains to be seen but keep scrolling as we take an in-depth look at both teams in this Dallas Mavericks vs Houston Rockets sports betting prediction piece.
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With Luka Doncic and Klay Thompson struggling from the field, crafty guard Kyrie Irving took matters in his own hands as he exploded for 35 points to lead the Dallas Mavericks into a comeback victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Now, the Mavericks return home against the Houston Rockets to begin a five-game homestand and that could be the change Doncic and Thompson need to regain their old form.
Against the Timberwolves, the 25-year old Doncic had 24 points but shot a dismal 10-out-of-27 from the field while Thompson was only limited to seven points on two-out-of-seven shooting.
Fortunately, several things went right for Dallas on Tuesday as they outworked and outmuscled the Timberwolves in several areas of the field. Actually, there were three.
With the Mavericks playing in familiar surroundings next albeit against a tough Rockets squad, expect Doncic and Thompson to rebound from their struggles, making the -5 spread at these current odds a possible steal.
The Houston Rockets are having a fairly good start to the season winning two of their first four games and that has a lot to do with the offensive explosion of Filipino-American shooting guard Jalen Green.
With Green in full scoring mode and guards Luka Doncic and Klay Thompson struggling mightily from the field, that could be the formula the Rockets need to cover the +5 spread against the Dallas Mavericks here.
One thing Houston has to address in its matchup against Dallas is their struggles of rebounding the ball and manufacturing second-chance opportunities.
In their matchup against the Spurs, the Rockets were out-rebounded by the former 49-43 and the worst part was they gave their opponents 17 second-chance opportunities.
This simply won’t cut it on the road against a tough Mavericks squad which have plenty of offensive firepower from multiple areas of the court.
Houston will also need another big game from Jabari Smith Jr. here to quell any possible offensive explosion from Doncic, Thompson, or the Mavericks’ other guys.
Other than Smith Jr., do-it-all guard Fred Vanvleet also has to step up here and make life harder for Mavericks court general Kyrie Irving for the Rockets to extend its win streak to two.
Should Green continue his offensive explosion and the Rockets get the usual numbers from its supporting cast, backing the road team to upset a well-oiled Mavericks squad is a good play here.
The Houston Rockets certainly have an excellent case of covering and even pulling off a victory against the Dallas Mavericks but I just don’t see it here.
Even if Jalen Green will have another big game, the Mavericks just have enough firepower offensively and defensively to get the job done and record its third straight win. Give me the Mavericks at home.
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