The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Houston Rockets meet for the last time this regular season. The Thunder have locked up the top seed in the Western Conference but one more victory against the Rockets will extend their win streak to a dozen games. For the Rockets, a win against Oklahoma City should boost their conference heading into the playoffs.

Catch this game live on Saturday, April 5, 2025 at 8:00 AM, Manila time

Away: Oklahoma City Thunder (64-12, 29-7 Away)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
  • Luguentz Dort
  •  Jalen Williams
  • Chet Holmgren
  • Isaiah Hartenstein

Who’s stopping the Thunder? Oklahoma City struck again on Thursday for the team’s 11th win in a row, defeating the Detroit Pistons at home, 119-103. It was also the Thunder’s fifth double-digit victory, showing just how ready they are for the 2025 NBA Playoffs. 

Oklahoma City has the top seed in the West all locked up, thanks to brilliant play on both ends of the floor all season long. The Thunder are third in the league with a 119.1 offensive rating and tops with a 105.9 defensive rating. Houston presents a threat to the Thunder, but Oklahoma City has won three of four matchups with the Rockets this season, with each win by at least nine points. And in those four outings, the Rockets didn’t seem to have an answer to Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who has averaged 36.0 points on 54.7 FG% in this regular-season series.

The Thunder have covered the spread in all of their last seven games on the road. 

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Home: Houston Rockets (50-27, 28-11 Home)

Projected Starting Five:

  • Fred VanVleet DTD
  • Jalen Green
  • Amen Thompson
  • Jabari Smith Jr.
  • Alperen Sengun

The Rockets have clinched a playoff berth officially after defeating the Utah Jazz last Thursday at home, 13-105. The result of that contest wasn’t much of a surprise, given Utah’s tank mission, but Houston’s victory over the Jazz was still a great way for the Rockets to gain momentum heading into the date with Oklahoma City. Before the Jazz game, the Rockets suffered a 104-98 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on the road. 

Unfortunately for the Rockets, they will not have defensive ace Dillon Brooks against the Thunder, as the former Oregon Ducks star is set to serve a one-game suspension after reaching the 16-technical threshold this season. One good news for the Rockets is that it appears Fred VanVleet is set to return after a one-game absence due to an ankle issue, as he’s no longer on the injury report.

The Rockets are 8-2 straight up and 7-3 against the spread in their last 10 home games against Oklahoma City.

Picks

Spread: Houston Rockets (+7.0)

Over/Under: Over (231.5)

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