Location: Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, AZ TV: AT&T Sports Southwest Radio: KBME 790 AM/KEYH 850 AM (Spanish)/KNTE 101.7 FM (Spanish)/Streaming on Rockets App Online: Rockets App Suns SBNation Blog: Bright Side of The Sun Projected Starting Lineups Houston: Chris Paul, James Harden, Eric Gordon, Kenneth Faried, P.J. Tucker Phoenix: Elie Okobo, Devin Booker, Mikal Bridges, Josh Jackson, Deandre Ayton The Suns have lost their last ten games. It isn’t looking good for them. Hopefully the Rockets can get this win, otherwise it will be the team’s worst loss of the year. Comment down below and chat with the rest of the TDS community!<doc-sep>If you had told me that Houston would split the dreaded Denver/Utah back-to-back, I would have been ecstatic. Really, the only thing keeping the collective spirits up in Houston is the loss to the New Orleans Pelicans last week, which will probably sting for the rest of the season, especially if the standings stay this close down the stretch. That makes tonight’s game against the Phoenix Suns all the more important for Houston. The Suns have been the only team in the West not shooting for the playoffs (though they have been joined by a few others as the season has gone on) and therefore are a team that Houston has to beat. Phoenix has dropped 10 straight contests, but they have been in a few games until the very end, including two-point losses to the Raptors, Timberwolves, and Spurs (all on the road). The first question to ask when playing any teams in these Capela-less days is “Do they have a good big man?” Well, the Suns have one legitimate center and it’s the first overall pick from the 2018 draft, Deandre Ayton. He’s averaging 16/11 and if it weren’t for LukaMania, we would be hearing more about him this season. He’ll be trouble for Houston. Former Rocket Ryan Anderson hasn’t played for the Suns in two full calendar months. He has appeared in 15 total contests and is shooting 21% from deep on the season. It would have been great if he had worked out for the Rockets, but his lack of confidence in his shooting stroke banished him out of the rotation and then out of town. Ryno has a game that could still work in today’s NBA if he could just return to his 2016-17 form, but so far that seems unlikely. The Suns are trending younger and have plenty of players that they need to develop. Couple that with his huge contract and it’s hard to see him finding a home that will give him a chance anytime soon. Maybe next summer someone will take a flier on him. Maybe he gets a chance to play tonight for a revenge game. Obviously, Devin Booker is the real highlight for the Suns. He’s been given more point guard responsibilities and is averaging 25/7 on the season. He’s a good passer and the Suns can absolutely get mileage out of him playing the James Harden role on offense. Booker and Harden aren’t super similar, but you can see what they are going for and it could pay big dividends moving forward. After all, Booker is just 22. The dude is good and he’s going to keep getting better. Phoenix’s other first round draft pick from this season is Mikal Bridges, who played a big part in Villanova’s championship team last season. Bridges is averaging 18 points on 68% shooting over his last three games in what is easily his best stretch of the season, so his confidence is high right now. Josh Jackson stepped away from acting to become an NBA player and has been playing well lately. He’s proving that he can score in bunches at the NBA level but is still too inconsistent. He turns 22 next week so he’s another guy with time to develop. He dropped 25 on the Hawks on 10-15 shooting the other night so he’s another guy feeling himself right now. Oh, and this is what happened the last time these teams met: Tip-off is at 8pm CT<doc-sep>If you are among the many Phoenix fans who needs a little extra motivation to get to Talking Stick Resort Arena to see the Suns — and who could blame you — Monday night’s matchup with the Houston Rockets may be exactly what you’re looking for. IT’S BOBBLEHEAD NIGHT. Plan accordingly if you want to grab the Josh Jackson bobblehead, the giveaway is limited to the first 5,000 fans. Wondering what the crowd will look like? Here’s some recent attendance data that is of course 100 percent accurate. LAST MONDAY HOME GAME: 12/31/18 - 16,906 vs. Golden State LAST HOME GAME VS. ROCKETS 1/12/18 - 18,055 LAST BOBBLEHEAD NIGHT (Deandre Ayton) 1/2/19 - 15,226 vs. Philadelphia If you are a bobblehead enthusiast or just want to see what James Harden is going to do tonight, as of five minutes ago tickets can still be had for less than the price of a new release in the theaters. Tip is at 7 p.m.<doc-sep>Associated Press PHOENIX — Another 40-point game for James Harden. That makes 20 of them this season. The reigning MVP scored 44 points and the Houston Rockets beat Phoenix 118-110 on Monday night to hand the Suns their season-worst 11th straight loss. Harden joined Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan and Rick Barry as the only players with 20 games of at least 40 points in the first 50 of a season. Harden, who also had eight rebounds and six assists, extended his streak of games with at least 30 points to 27, third-longest in NBA history. The only longer streaks are 65 and 31 games, both by Chamberlain. “I’m just trying to keep going. Nothing can slow me down,” Harden said. “Nothing can stop me. I’m trying to give that same motivation to my teammates and it’s not about scoring, it’s about attacking the game, being aggressive with the game of basketball – defensively, offensively. That’s all I can give to them.” Chris Paul scored 18 and Kenneth Faried had 17 points and 14 rebounds for the Rockets, who were without two starters. Josh Jackson scored 25 points, Kelly Oubre Jr. 23 and Devin Booker 19 for the Suns. Deandre Ayton added 15 points and 11 boards. Booker left in the fourth quarter with a tight hamstring. The Suns never led but stayed close through the first half before falling behind by 20 in the third quarter. Phoenix cut it to single digits on several occasions in the fourth only to be thwarted by a basket from Harden or Paul. Harden scored 14 in the final quarter. Up by six at halftime, the Rockets opened a big lead in the third quarter. Harden sank a 3-pointer from the corner and Faried dunked a rebound to cap a 13-4 run that put Houston up 84-68. The Rockets boosted the lead to 20 three times in the quarter, the last at 94-74 on Paul’s two free throws with 1:02 left. But the Suns finished the period on a 6-0 spurt as Oubre’s 3-pointer at the buzzer cut the Rockets’ advantage to 94-80 entering the fourth. The run reached 10-0 when Phoenix scored the first four of the final quarter, making it 94-84 on Oubre’s dunk with 10:57 to play. Harden sank a pair of 3s in an 8-0 run and Houston led 101-88 with 7:05 remaining. The Suns kept it close in the first half, despite Harden’s 22 points, five assists and five rebounds. Harden scored inside twice to ignite a 9-2 spurt that put Houston up 50-42 on Paul’s wide-open 3 with 6:03 left in the half. Austin Rivers’ 3 gave Houston its biggest lead of the half, 57-46, with 3:21 left. The Rockets led 63-57 at the break. The Suns tried a new defensive strategy on Harden and, overall results notwithstanding, it worked pretty well some of the time. “James forces teams to do a coverage that you usually don’t do,” Booker said. “It was new for us, first time to do it. … I feel we did pretty well, kept it close, (were) in striking distance most of the game.” KOBE’S CRITICISM Harden more or less agreed with Kobe Bryant’s comments that the Rockets won’t win a title with Harden dominating the ball so much. Harden doesn’t expect to have to do that when the playoffs come. “I have to ball-dominate with all of the injuries,” he said. “We have had the injuries throughout the course of the year. Right now he is probably right. This way that we are playing won’t happen in the playoffs, won’t get us where we want to go, but we haven’t had a full roster. Yet I am excited for that to come.” TIP-INS Rockets: Through 50 games, Harden has 658 3-point attempts, seventh-most for an entire season in NBA history. … Houston was without Eric Gordon (right knee soreness) and Clint Capela (right thumb injury). … Five former Suns are on the Rockets’ roster: P.J. Tucker, Gerald Green, Marquese Chriss, Brandon Knight and Danuel House Jr. That’s not counting Rivers, waived by the Suns immediately after he and Oubre came over from Washington in a trade for Trevor Ariza. Suns: Phoenix again didn’t have T.J. Warren (right ankle soreness) and De’Anthony Melton (right ankle sprain). … The Suns have lost 10 straight at home to Houston. They last beat the Rockets in Phoenix on April 15, 2013. UP NEXT Rockets: Play at Sacramento on Wednesday night. Suns: Play at Utah on Wednesday night.<doc-sep>
Rockets vs. Suns Prediction The Houston Rockets finally put together a decent defensive performance on Saturday but will their issues on that end of the court resurface tonight when they visit the Phoenix Suns at 9:00 p.m. ET? Game Snapshot 539 HoustonRockets at 540 Phoenix Suns 9:00 p.m. ET, Monday, February 4, 2019 Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, Arizona Our NBA Live Odds page pulls spreads and totals from multiple different online sportsbooks so you can compare betting odds to ensure you’re getting the best line. Public Betting Trends According to oddsmakers from online sportsbook BetNow.eu, the Rockets are 8-point favorites to beat the Suns. The total, meanwhile, sits at 229.5 points and as of this writing, 80% of the public betting tickets wagered at online sportsbooks are on the Rockets to cover the point spread. Houston Rockets Fantasy Spin James Harden finished Saturday's win over the Jazz one block short of a 5x5, accounting for 43 points (12-of-22 FGs, 15-of-15 FTs), 12 rebounds, five assists, six steals, four blocked shots and four 3-pointers in 40 minutes. Harden extended his streak of games with 30 points or more to 26, breaking a tie with Wilt Chamberlain and moving into third on the all-time list (Chamberlain now has the two longest streaks in NBA history). And in the process, the reigning MVP nearly put up the first 5x5 of his career. Harden and the Rockets return to action Monday in Phoenix, and it's a safe bet that he'll add another game to his impressive streak given the Suns' struggles on the defensive end of the floor. Phoenix Suns Fantasy Spin Devin Booker had it going on offense during a 118-112 loss to the Hawks on Saturday, scoring 32 points with eight rebounds, 10 assists, one steal, four turnovers and four 3-pointers in 43 minutes. He had Deandre Ayton back to set some screens and this was one of the best matchups in fantasy hoops. Booker is out of his slump in a big way over his last five, averaging 30.6 points, 4.0 boards, 5.6 dimes, 0.8 steals and 2.2 treys on a 52/39/92 shooting line. He gets four games starting on Monday and will likely help win a lot of matchups this upcoming week. NBA Betting Trends Houston The Rockets are 1-5 against the spread in their last six road games and just 2-7 at the betting window in their last nine games overall. Phoenix The Suns have failed to cover in five of their last six games overall and are just 2-7 against the number in their last nine home games. Prediction The over cashed in 10 of their previous 14 meetings between these two teams and is 9-2 in the last 11 meetings in Phoenix. The over is also 4-1 in the Rockets’ last five games, is 4-0 in their lsat four conference games and has cashed in 15 of their last 21 games when their opponent allows 100 points or more in its previous contest. On the other side, the over is 4-1 in the Suns’ last five games coming off an ATS loss and is 8-3 in their last 11 games when facing an opponent with a winning record. Monday NBA Prediction: Rockets/Suns over 229.5