76ers vs. Rockets Odds & Pick: How To Bet Friday’s No-Stakes Game

76ers vs. Rockets Betting Odds & Picks

Odds as of Friday at 10 a.m. ET and via Parx, which offers new customers a 20% profit boost + $500 risk-free wager on their first bet AND your bets automatically sync to the Action app.Learn more about BetSync here.

The Houston Rockets take on the Philadelphia 76ers in a matchup that does not impact the standings. How will these teams react as they prepare for the playoffs?

Philadelphia 76ers

The 76ers have two players on the injury report at the time of writing: Joel Embiid (questionable – ankle) and Glenn Robinson (questionable – hip). Keep an eye on this as it is entirely possible that the 76ers sit Tobias Harris and Al Horford to give them some extra rest before the playoffs.

Ben Simmons is already out for the season, and when he and Embiid are off the floor the 76ers are 4.5 points per 100 possessions worse per Cleaning the Glass. They struggle to get to the free throw line and they give up a whopping 118.7 points per 100 possessions on 57.0% opponent's eFG%.

Houston Rockets

The Rockets have one player on the injury report at the time of writing: Russell Westbrook (out – Quad). Do not be surprised to see James Harden, Eric Gordon, Robert Covington, etc. be limited or be held out of this game.

When Westbrook sits, the Rockets' pace dramatically slows and it can lead to value on the Under if the books do not adjust. With Westbrook on the court the Rockets take 37.5% of their shots at the rim (74th percentile). When he's off the court it drops to 32.7% (22nd percentile).

This leads to a level of variance as the Rockets become even more reliant on the 3-point shot. Even when both Harden and Westbrook sit, the Rockets remain in the 99th percentile for 3-point frequency.

The problem with this is that the Rockets' 3-point percentage drops without those two on the floor. When Harden is off the court, the Rockets shoot 33.5% from 3-point range (15th percentile), and when he is on the court the team shoots 35.4% (37th percentile).

What essentially happens is that Houston continues to run a high-variance offense with players who are not skilled enough to take advantage of the mathematical edge there is to taking so many lower-percentage shots. This allows other teams to go on significant runs and can lead to very streaky performances for the Rockets.

Betting Analysis & Pick

I highly recommend waiting to see the lineups that are posted for these games and any minute restrictions for these players. I would wait to see a line, but I would lean a full game under. If Harden does not play, I'd try to grab the Rockets' team under once that news breaks.

Betting Lean: Under 230.5 [Bet $25 now at Parx and Win $50 if the 76ers make at least one 3-pointer vs. Rockets on Friday]