The Dallas Mavericks have been on fire as of late and will look to continue their great performance on Wednesday when they take on the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center. With that said, it’s time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Mavericks-Rockets prediction and pick.

The Mavericks picked up a huge win against the Utah Jazz on Monday en route to their fifth straight win, a record of 28-21, and the seventh seed in the Western Conference. The Rockets, on the other hand, are playing terribly as they dropped their fifth straight game and have lost eight of their last 10, games for a record of 13-37 and the 14th seed in the Western Conference.

Here’s how sportsbooks have set the opening Mavericks-Rockets odds.

NBA Odds: Mavericks-Rockets Odds

Dallas Mavericks +10.5 (-115)

Houston Rockets -10.5 (-105)

Over 222.5 Points (-110)

Under 222.5 Points(-110)

Why The Mavericks Could Cover The Spread

The Mavericks have been without Kristaps Porzingis the last two games and unsurprisingly Luka Doncic has led the Mavericks to two wins with two dominant performances.

In the two games, Luka put up 26 points, six assists, and eight rebounds against the Washington Wizards and 31 points, eight assists, and nine rebounds against the Jazz. For the season, Luka has averaged MVP-type numbers with 28.6 points, 8.8 assists, and 8.1 rebounds per game while shooting nearly 50 percent from the field and nearly 40 percent from behind the three-point line.

Coach Rick Carlisle may be without Porzingis in the rotation again on Wednesday and that'll mean Luka will need to continue to be dominant on the offensive end of the floor for the Mavericks.

If Porzingis does not suit up, it will also open more minutes for Nicolò Melli, Maxi Kleber, and Dorian Finney-Smith, who will need to make up for the missing offensive production and defensive presence of Porzingis.

In the most recent game for the Mavericks, Melli and Kleber combined for zero points in 32 and 34 minutes on the floor, respectively. This will not be enough against most teams on any given night.

The keys for the Mavericks to cover the spread against the Rockets is not only for Luka to have a big offensive game, but to get contributions from the rest of the team, especially from key role players who are seeing big minutes.

Why The Rockets Could Cover The Spread

After the departure of James Harden, the Rockets have had a lot of misfortune, especially with injuries that have sidelined their star players including John Wall and Eric Gordon.

Wall so far this season was averaging 20.2 points, 6.8 assists, and 3.4 rebounds. More than just his stats, the Rockets are losing a ball handler that can make plays to create his own shot or find the open player and really just run the offense.

With Gordon out, Stephen Silas loses a three-point specialist that can help spread the floor on offense and another player that can create his own shot.

The loss of these two players and a few other important role players have dropped the Rockets to the fourth-worst offensive rating in the league. This combined with the seventh worse defensive rating does not result in wins.

It'll be tough for the active players on the current roster for this Houston team to cover the spread against this talented offensive Dallas team that is being led by Luka. The key will be to run the offense through Christian Wood and to somehow contain and slow down Luka for the Mavericks especially if Porzingis is out.

Final Mavericks-Rockets Prediction & Pick

The Mavericks are a better offensive and defensive team than the Rockets even without Porzingis suiting up. For that reason, Dallas will pick up the win to continue their winning streak. However, the team to cover the spread can really go either way. Houston can end up keeping the game close with a huge game from Wood, but the edge does go to Carlisle's squad simply because of Luka, who has such a great pace to his game and can create his own shot or find his open teammate at any moment in the game.

FINAL SCORE PREDICTION & PICK FOR MAVERICKS-ROCKETS: DAL 112, HOU 98 (DAL -10.5)