New Look Rockets
The offseason acquisition of Ron Artest gave the Houston Rockets a "Big Three" they hoped could contend with that of the San Antonio Spurs.
As the Southwest Division rivals head into their first meeting of the season, however, Houston’s trio clearly has the advantage over San Antonio’s injury-plagued nucleus.
Oddsmakers from SBG Global have made Rockets –5 point spread favorites (NBA Odds) for today’s game, the over/under has been set at 172 (View Matchup). Current public betting information shows that 74% of bets for this game have been placed on Rockets –5 (View NBA Bet Percentages).
Artest, Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming look to help the Rockets end a five-game road trip successfully on Friday night when they meet a Spurs team still trying to overcome the absences of Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker.
Houston acquired Artest in the offseason, hoping the volatile forward could help bolster the team’s defense and provide a third scoring option.
The transition hasn’t been entirely smooth for the Rockets (5-3), but they’re optimistic after Wednesday’s 94-82 victory over Phoenix. Though Artest shot 1-of-12 from the field, McGrady had 27 points and Yao added 17 and 15 rebounds as Houston bounced back from an embarrassing 111-82 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.
"It’s a terrific win for us," Rockets coach Rick Adelman said. "We stormed back and really controlled the tempo well the whole game and made shots. We moved the ball better, we got back defensively."
While the Rockets are encouraged, the Spurs (2-5) can’t say the same after an 82-78 loss to Milwaukee on Wednesday continued their worst start since they opened 2-13 in 1996-97.
"If we can hold somebody to 82 points, I’m thrilled. I’m jumping up and down," said defensive-minded Spurs coach Gregg Popovich. "But we’re a little challenged offensively right now."
That’s because San Antonio’s playing without two of its top three players in Ginobili and Parker, who have helped lead the Spurs to three NBA titles in the last six years.
Ginobili hasn’t played this season because he’s still recovering from offseason ankle surgery, and Parker will be sidelined about a month after spraining his left ankle in a loss to Miami last Friday.
Tim Duncan, the only healthy member of San Antonio’s vaunted trio, continues to deliver. He had 24 points on Wednesday, including 14 of the Spurs’ 19 points in the fourth quarter, and is averaging 25.3 points and 10.3 rebounds.
But the two-time MVP and 10-time All-Star can’t carry the team by himself.
"The whole thing is frustrating, however you want to look at it," he said.
Decimated by injuries, the Spurs have turned to two relative no-names to start in the backcourt. Point guard George Hill, the 26th overall pick in June’s draft, has totaled 16 points and 6-for-15 shooting in his first two career starts.
"Any time you come in and you have a player like Tony go down, it’s always different, you can’t be a Tony Parker, but I think it’s just staying focused and doing what got me here," Hill said.
Meanwhile, Roger Mason Jr., who’s made three straight starts at shooting guard, has averaged 13.9 points in his first seven games for the Spurs.
"He’s been of paramount importance to us because he’s really been a scorer for us," Popovich said. "I think when we get healthy, his real value will show."
The home team won each game as the Spurs and Rockets split their four-game series last season. Duncan averaged 19.0 points and 11.5 rebounds, while San Antonio held McGrady to 11.3 points per game and 27.1 percent (13-for-48) shooting from the field in three games.
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