If we learned something from the Celtics’ rout of the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals, it’s that giants can be toppled. Can the Rockets dethrone the mighty Warriors? Read the predictions for the Western Conference Finals Game 1.
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Houston Rockets vs Golden State Warriors
- Where: May 14, 2018, 9:00 PM ET
- When: Toyota Center
- Spread: Rockets -1.5
- Over/Under: 224.5
- More NBA Betting Lines
Betting on the Rockets?
The Warriors won the regular season series over the Warriors, two games to one. They also have seven more wins overall, which gave them the NBA’s No.1 seed with a 65-17 record. There’s no denying how good they are.
But, as for the team that will win the Western Conference Finals, against this opponent, they’re the underdogs. They have yet to prove themselves and this will be their test by fire.
If there’s any team that can challenge Golden State’s dominance in the NBA, however, it’s this year’s Rockets.
Houston has the best stats of any team Golden State has faced in the Steve Kerr era and they’re not short on defensive measures to throw at Kevin Durant and the rest of the Warriors’ crew.
They also have the league’s likely MVP, James Harden, who is probably itching to rise to the top. That he’s competing against his former teammate and reigning Finals MVP, Kevin Durant, is extra motivation.
As is the challenge of measuring himself against the two-time MVP, Stephen Curry.
It’s a Goliath of a fight. And one that many people believe the Rockets will lose.
"Ask me to bet any amount of money that meant something to me... I wouldn't put one nickel on the Rockets to beat the Warriors.” — @ShannonSharpe pic.twitter.com/2sRCuOY0DI
— UNDISPUTED (@undisputed) May 9, 2018
It isn’t far-fetched to believe otherwise. Even the Rockets are quick to recognize the fact that this series’ outcome defines their season.
Rockets checklist in December:
Get the 1-seed
Set franchise record for wins
Beat the Warriors in the playoffspic.twitter.com/Rf38nOGBaU— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) May 9, 2018
Like we said, the Rockets are still the underdogs to win the Western Conference (+175 odds). Should they win tonight, will it prelude what awaits? Or will they lose and open up a wound that ends up bleeding them dry? We’ll see.
Betting on the Warriors
There’s no question over which team has reigned supreme in the last few years. But, the Warriors should be wary of Rockets nevertheless.
Golden State would do well to not underestimate Houston’s “Big 3” of Chris Paul, James Harden, and Clint Capela. It’s these three who lead the Rockets to a 50-5 record when playing together this season.
Even against the Warriors’ offense, they can look them eye-to-eye. Some believe it’s even better.
But the Warriors are counting on that they’re at full strength now and it’s working like a well-oiled machine.
Steve Kerr waited until he believed it was time, but once he made up his mind to pull out the big guns and get his “Death” lineup into play, the result was crushing as the Pelicans would have to agree.
Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Andre Iguodala, Draymond Green, and Durant as a starting lineup is Golden State’s secret weapon.
If Kerr thinks this game is important enough, he may come out with this lineup. That will be interesting to see.
Golden State also has the players to slow down Harden, which is critical to cracking Houston. If Harden is bogged down and unable to score, it puts a huge dent in their strategy.
The perfect man to do this is Klay Thompson, who has proven himself effective at the task:
Since the 2013-14 season, Klay Thompson has matched up with James Harden 26 times and guarded him on 777 possessions. These are Harden's per game averages on 30 possessions per game guarded by Klay:
8.7 PTS
2.6 ASTS
1.4 TOVS
3.2 FGM
7.3 FGA
0.3 (blocked shots)
0.8 (fouls drawn) pic.twitter.com/jDvGVcIDNo— r/Warriors (@GSWReddit) May 9, 2018
Also, let’s not forget the Rockets are the underdogs and they have to prove themselves against the Warriors. Chris Paul will have to outplay Curry and the same goes for Harden against Thompson.
That still leaves Iguodala, Green, and Durant for the Rockets to deal with; no one would see this as an easy task.
On the flip side, the Warriors will have to content with Capela because they’re going to need someone with the physicality to knock heads with him and prevent Houston from taking advantage of his size.
Rockets vs Warriors Betting Trends
- Golden State is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games
- Golden State is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Golden State's last 7 games
- Houston is 5-2 ATS in its last 7 games
- Houston is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 12 of Houston's last 18 games
Game Predictions: This series is being touted as of NBA finals caliber. It’s not too much of an exaggeration. What these two teams bring to court is as good as it gets and may even fall short of what we can imagine it to be.
But, what’s in store for the first game? Houston will likely come out gunning and try to shoot away to gain a big lead in the first two quarters. As they’ve shown before, it’s something that’s worked well for them.
The Warriors, on the other hand, will try to keep things close until the last two quarters, when they usually try to open up their lead.
If the game is close at the half, then it’s the Warriors who probably hold the edge. But if the Rockets have a runaway lead then we’ll likely see a Warriors defeat as that of the Cavaliers.
Pick: Golden State +1.5