Houston Rockets vs. Oklahoma City Thunder Pick – NBA, August 22, 2020

The Oklahoma City Thunder disappointed in a Game 2 111-98 defeat and must respond in Game 3 or the Houston Rockets will be cruising to the round 2 of the NBA playoffs. Coach of the year, Billy Donovan, is now under pressure to shake up his team from their recent struggles and try to come back into this series, but that is not going to be easy.

The Rockets, on the other hand, can be very happy after the opening two duels, and they are the favorites to make it 3-0. The Game 3 tip-off is set at 6 PM ET.

These conference rivals faced five times this season, including two in the playoffs, and the Rockets are leading the series 3-2. This is my Rockets vs. Thunder betting pick for Game 3.

The sportsbooks remain consistent when it comes to the odds, spreads, and total in this series. Namely, for the third time, they are giving a slight advantage to the Houston Rockets, this time around the spread is -3 on the Rockets. They lowered the points total a bit, though, from 226.5 to 224, after Game 2 produced only 209 points.

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Mike D’Antoni can be satisfied with the way his team is playing so far in the playoffs, despite the fact that the Rockets are without Russell Westbrook. It seems that the Rockets never played more like a team than in these two encounters with the Thunder. Even seven players finished Game 2 with double figures. Houston was better from beyond the arc, making 19 triples opposite Oklahoma’s 11, while they also recorded six more assists (21-15), and were extra careful with the ball in possessing, committing only seven turnovers (OKC had 13).

James Harden led the Rockets with 21 points, game-high nine assists, five rebounds, and game-high three steals. Danuel House added 19 points and team-high nine boards, Jeff Green had 15 points and seven rebounds, while Eric Gordon ended the tilt with 15 points and five boards, even though he missed all of his ten attempts from downtown.

Brought the ? in Game 2! @reliantenergy l #OneMission pic.twitter.com/5YfoyReVAM

— Houston Rockets (@HoustonRockets) August 21, 2020

Oklahoma City stayed close in the first three quarters but their meltdown began with the final 12 minutes. The Thunder scored just 20 and allowed 34 points in the fourth, and they couldn’t avoid a deserved defeat. They did control the boards (38-31), which was expected, but other than that, the Thunder were inferior.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander bounced back from a terrible Game 2 display with 31 points and six rebounds, but even this excellent performance didn’t help his team to get a win. Danilo Gallinari contributed with 17 points and six boards, Chris Paul had 14 points and six rebounds, while Dennis Schroder finished the game with a 13/5/5 line.

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) August 21, 2020

Besides Dennis Schroder, who is one of the best sixth men in the league, Oklahoma needs more help from the second unit, which was obvious in Game 2. Unless the bench produces more points in Game 3, I believe the game and the series will be lost for Billy Donovan’s boys. Houston’s players were quite balanced in terms of scoring points in Game 2, but don’t expect that to be a regular trend.

Although the series is played on four wins, I think this is the Thunder’s final chance to stay alive. They disappointed me in Game 2 as I bet on them to win, and this time around, I am not going to back them to win. However, I am backing them to cover the spread.