The Utah Jazz are facing an uphill battle, and losing Lauri Markkanen only makes an already difficult situation even tougher. Markkanen is expected to miss several weeks with a fractured hand, leaving Utah without its leading scorer and forcing an already thin roster to lean even more heavily on its young players. The Jazz enter this matchup with the NBA's worst record, and while rookie Darryn Peterson has shown encouraging flashes, it's difficult to replace Markkanen's scoring and floor spacing against one of the Western Conference's best teams.
Houston, meanwhile, has every reason to keep its foot on the gas. This is an NBA Cup game, where point differential can become a crucial tiebreaker, and the Rockets can't afford to let up if they build a comfortable lead. After dropping their opening Cup game, Houston has little margin for error and should be motivated to make a statement against an overmatched opponent. The Rockets have been one of the league's best defensive teams all season, and with Alperen Sengun anchoring the offense, they have a significant edge on both ends of the floor. Against a depleted Utah squad missing its top player, this has the feel of a game that gets out of hand in the second half. Expect Houston to continue attacking even with a sizable lead and create the separation needed to cover a large number.
Jazz vs Rockets prediction: Rockets -15.5 (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable to -16 (-110).
