The San Antonio Spurs (30-13) and Houston Rockets (25-15) will face off in the NBA tonight. Tipoff is set for 8:00 p.m. ET from the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. The game will broadcast live on NBC and Peacock.
The Rockets are 4-point favorites over the Spurs on the spread (Rockets -4), with the over/under set at 219.5 total points. Houston is a -165 favorite to win outright on the moneyline, while San Antonio is +140 to pull off the upset.
Let's get into my Spurs vs. Rockets predictions and NBA picks for Tuesday, January 20.
Spurs vs Rockets Prediction, Picks
- Spurs vs Rockets pick: Spurs +4 (-110) / Spurs Moneyline (+140)
My Spurs vs Rockets best bet is split between San Antonio to cover the spread and win outright on the moneyline. Make sure to find the best odds by checking our live NBA odds page.
Spurs vs Rockets Odds
| Spurs Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
+4 -110 | 219.5 -110o / -110u | +140 |
| Rockets Odds | ||
|---|---|---|
| Spread | Total | Moneyline |
-4 -110 | 219.5 -110o / -110u | -165 |
Spurs vs Rockets NBA Preview
Ime Udoka is terrific when he has a rest advantage, which is the case for the Rockets in this spot. Udoka's teams are 23-15 overall and 6-2 this season when his team has the edge in the rest department.
However, the Spurs have also been excellent when they’re at a rest disadvantage. So, they’ve been terrific in that spot as well.
San Antonio is 5-1 against the spread and 6-0 straight up when playing with a rest disadvantage this season.
So this is really a battle of trends.
On one hand, the Rockets are dynamite when they face teams that allow fewer free throws than they do.
The Rockets generate a lot of free throws, so when they play teams that are good at limiting them, it actually boosts their performance.
However, the Spurs are really good when their opponent averages more free throws than them. So, from a trends perspective, there’s a clear counterbalance here.
Spurs vs Rockets Prediction, Betting Analysis
This is an interesting spot. Where I ultimately land is with my power ratings.
My Rockets rating has some difficulties, similar to what I’ve run into with the Knicks. These offensive rebounding teams are tricky. No matter what I do or how much I adjust, I have a hard time getting the number exactly right.
Even with a solid adjustment across the board, I still only make the spread for this game a pick’em.
That tells me this is a good spot for the Spurs, especially in a bit of a revenge position and getting back into the swing of winning games against Western Conference opponents, which they’ve been good at all year. I like their ability to get downhill.
I also think the Rockets are coming out of their malaise. This isn’t catching a falling knife, but it’s also not a team that’s fully back yet. They’re not at rock bottom, but they’re not all the way out of it either. That puts this in a pretty good buy window.
Obviously, the back-to-back situation makes things tricky because the injury report isn’t out yet. That’s always a factor. But I’m willing to trust how San Antonio has played regardless of who’s in and who’s out.
As always in these spots, I’d advise waiting until we know exactly who’s going to play. That said, I’ll be on the Spurs +4 and on the moneyline.
Pick: Spurs +4 (-110) / Spurs Moneyline (+140)
