The Phoenix Suns will face the Houston Rockets on Wednesday, December 27th, 2023 (8:10 PM ET). The Rockets are underdogs in the game at +2.5 (bet365), despite the fact that they carry a 12-3 home record into the contest. This is a game that bettors will have to look at closely as one where the underdog team might be underrated. My Suns vs Rockets prediction is that the latter team will win this game.
NBA Game Preview at a Glance
Away: Phoenix Suns
Home: Houston Rockets
Game time: Wednesday, December 27th, 2023 @ 8:10 PM ET
Suns vs Rockets odds (home team's spread): +2.5 (bet365)
Phoenix vs Houston Prediction: Latest NBA Headlines
The Phoenix Suns last played on Christmas, a game that they lost to the Dallas Mavericks 128-114. The loss was the third straight for the Suns, a team that has entered the radar as very overrated this season. They are now just a 14-15 team this season. The points below show that a lot of this team's struggles have happened over roughly the last month. Two of their wins came against pre-Morant Memphis and Washington, showing that the Suns have padded their meager win total in the last month against lousy teams.
Phoenix Suns: Recent Form Alert
Formerly: 11 - 6 heading into November 29th, 2023
Currently: 14 - 15 (overall)
Recent form: 3 - 9 since November 29th, 2023
Recent winning rate: .250
Phoenix Suns injuries: recent news
Phoenix continues to have injury troubles. Bradley Beal remains out with an update coming perhaps in early January. Jusuf Nurkic has not played since December 19th. He is "probable" for the game tonight against Houston. Phoenix backers will not want to take the team if Nurkic is downgraded.
Double-check for playing status updates with Phoenix (14:03 ET time of writing):: Team's Depth Chart
The Rockets played just last night. They dropped a game to the Pacers, a team that had been struggling in recent weeks. Fred VanVleet had big minutes in the game at 40. Meanwhile, Jabari Smith Jr. and Alperen Sengun had 34 and 37 minutes respectively.
Houston Rockets injuries: recent news
The team also suffered an injury to Dillon Brooks. He left the game early with updates pending. That is the only injury noted among the regular players in the team's depth chart at ESPN. However, this team should be looked at before backing them as they did play just last night.
Double-check status updates Houston (14:03 ET time of writing):: Team's Depth Chart
Suns vs Rockets Prediction: Betting Tips
Fred VanVleet played tons of minutes last night but he is a rare NBA player. He is able to play huge minutes in a game and still play well the very next day without any rest. For example, he played 39 minutes in a game on December 17th. The next game he logged 45 minutes and the next game he had 44 with double-doubles for points and assists in both games. Bettors should not be opposing him just because he played big minutes last night.
Also, the Brooks injury and whether or not he plays is a little bit of a red herring in tonight's game. He is not having a great season. He looks like he is post-peak in his career, with his best seasons from 2-3 years ago. That doesn't mean Houston backers don't want him healthy but if he misses the game tonight, the estimated effects could be overstated.
I think the bettors should be happy with Houston on the moneyline in this game at +120 (bet365). Houston is 12-3 at home this season while Phoenix is in a near freefall. It's not clear why the Rockets should be regarded as an underdog unless bettors and oddsmakers are overrating Phoenix still, despite a 14-15 record. The preseason analysis that said the Suns were a contender should be abandoned at this point, if not weeks ago already.
Additional reading: Look ahead to NFL Week 17!
