Los Angeles Lakers vs Houston Rockets Prediction, 1/5/2025 Preview and Pick

Game: Los Angeles Lakers vs Houston Rockets

Date: Sunday, January 5, 2025

Location: Toyota Center in Houston, TX

TV: Space City Home Network

The Houston Rockets (22-11) host the Los Angeles Lakers (19-14) at Toyota Center on Sunday.

The Lakers played the Trail Blazers and walked away with a win by a score of 114-106 in their last game. Los Angeles wrapped up the game with a 45.7% field goal percentage (43 of 94) and buried 15 of their 43 three-point shots. At the free throw line, the Lakers made 13 of their 14 shots for a rate of 92.9%. In terms of hauling in boards, they earned 33 with 6 of them being of the offensive sort. They also dished out 24 assists for the contest while forcing the other team into 13 turnovers and earning 6 steals. When it comes to defense, Los Angeles let their opponent shoot 50.0% from the field on 40 out of 80 shooting. Portland doled out 30 assists and had 8 steals for this game. Additionally, Portland pulled down 43 rebounds (5 offensive, 38 defensive) and added 4 blocks. Portland finished the game shooting 81.0% from the free throw line by making 17 of 21 tries. They made 9 out of their 26 shots from downtown. In regard to fouls, the Lakers finished with 15 while the Trail Blazers recorded 17 fouls.

LeBron James is a player who played a role in the matchup. James went 60.0% from the floor and also recorded 8 assists. He saw the court for 36 mins and totaled 3 boards. He walked away with 38 points on 15 of 25 shooting.

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Los Angeles enters this game with a record of 19-14 this season. They turn it over 13.5 times per game and as a squad are committing 16.2 fouls per contest. As a team, Los Angeles is pulling in 41.3 rebounds per game and has accounted for 873 dimes on the season, which has them ranked 13th in the NBA in terms of passing the ball. The Lakers are connecting on 35.0% on shots from distance (389 of 1,112) and 78.9% from the free throw line. They currently have an average of 112.0 points per contest (17th in basketball) while hitting 47.2% from the floor.

When they are on the defensive end, the Lakers are able to force 14.4 turnovers on a nightly basis while drawing 20.5 fouls. They concede 36.4% on 3-point shots and they rank 19th in the league in PPG allowed (114.1). The Lakers defense is allowing an opponent shooting percentage of 47.8% (1,412 of 2,955) and they surrender 44.3 rebounds per contest as a basketball team. They currently rank 26th in the NBA in allowing assists to the opposition with 934 surrendered on the season.

In their last game, the Rockets took home the win by a final score of 110-99 against the Mavericks. With respect to how they cleaned up the glass, Houston permitted Dallas to grab 33 in total (9 offensive). They finished 39.3% from three-point range by connecting on 11 out of 28 and finished the game at 8 of 16 from the free throw line (50.0%). The Rockets permitted the Mavericks to make 40 of 75 tries from the floor which left them with a rate of 53.3% in this matchup. At the conclusion of this game, the Rockets walked away from this one shooting 42 for 89 from the floor which had them sitting at 47.2%. In regard to 3-point shots, Houston made 8 out of their 25 tries (32.0%). They were able to knock down 18 of those for a percentage of 78.3%. The Mavericks had 22 fouls in this game which got the Rockets to the free throw line for 23 tries. They also turned it over 17 times, while getting 11 steals for the contest. The Rockets pulled down 40 defensive boards and 9 offensive rebounds totaling 49 for the contest.

Alperen Sengun ended up having an impact for the Rockets for the contest. He knocked down 9 of 16 for the game for a field goal rate of 56.3%, and accounted for 6 rebounds. Sengun tallied 23 points in his 37 mins on the court and tallied 4 assists for this contest.

Houston has a win-loss record of 22-11 this season. In terms of offensive execution, the Rockets are shooting 44.3% from the floor, which is ranked 28th in the league. Houston has totaled 3,725 points for the season (112.9 per contest) and they pull in 49.3 boards per game. Their rate of earning assists is at 22.2 times per contest (29th in the NBA) and they are losing possession via turnover 13.7 times per contest. The Rockets are committing 19.7 personal fouls per game and they shoot 76.9% from the free throw line.

The Rockets are ranked 3rd in the league in points per game surrendered with 106.4. They are forcing 15.3 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 43.9% from the field (2nd in the league). The Houston defense gives up 34.9% from downtown (399 of 1,142) and their opposition makes 73.8% of their free throw attempts. They have relinquished 22.5 assists and 43.6 total boards per game, which is 2nd and 10th in the league.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Los Angeles

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