The Phoenix Suns just knocked off the Oklahoma City Thunder. So on the one hand, they’ll be tired as they come in to play the Houston Rockets.
On the other hand, teams that beat OKC (and Golden State back in the day) always get what I call a “Beating a champ bounce.” Usually a win like that gives the team a lot of confidence because they have just proven to themselves and everyone else that they can beat the defending NBA champions. So expect a Phoenix team riding high at Toyota Center rather than a tired team on the second night of a back-to-back. Phoenix shot 40% from deep last night, and in their previous trip to Houston they shot a paltry 5-36 (14%) from three. I would expect them to make just a few more triples tonight. Alperen Sengun did not play in that game, and he will not be playing tonight, so more or less the teams should look similar to what they did that night.
The Rockets are coming off a tough loss to the Dallas Mavericks in which they lost Sengun just seconds into the game to an ankle injury. They’re played without him before this season, to decent results.
7pm CT on January 5, 2026
The Line (as of this post)
Looking ahead because we can
Wednesday night at Portland against the Trail Blazers
