A pair of struggling teams will face off at the Toyota Center to kick off this week’s first NBA slate on Monday. The Brooklyn Nets are major 15.5-point underdogs ahead of their road matchup with the Houston Rockets, but neither team has had much success in 2025-26.
The Nets have looked as bad as they were expected to be during their rebuild and have lost three straight games by at least seven points. The Rockets were considered contenders to win the Western Conference this year in the offseason but are off to an 0-2 start despite pushing the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder to the brink in their season opener. One team will secure its first win by the end of this contest.
Here’s our full betting breakdown for the game ahead of tip-off.
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook
Spread
Moneyline
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Nets Injury ReportRockets Injury ReportRockets Best NBA Prop Bet
Alperen Sengun lead the charge as the Rockets’ top scorer in their first game of the season, but Durant bounced back in their second with a team-high 37 points against the Detroit Pistons. Durant hit this figure against Oklahoma City’s elite defense as well with 23 points, nine rebounds and three assists. Bettors should back him to pull it off for a third straight game against a Nets team that currently ranks 29th in points allowed per game (133.5).
The Nets aren’t a good team but would actually be 2-0 against the spread as double-digit underdogs if Jordi Fernandez’s late-game technical foul against the San Antonio Spurs didn’t cost them. The free throw following the tech put Brooklyn 11 points behind in a game they were 10.5-point underdogs in.
The Nets covered against the Cleveland Cavaliers as 11.5-point underdogs and the Rockets are still trying to figure out how to win without limited true guard play. Houston is 0-1 against the spread as a favorite and still has to prove that it can completely dominate a lower-tier opponent.
Pick: Nets +15.5 (-105 at DraftKings Sportsbook)
Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.
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