Dallas Mavericks0-0
Houston Rockets0-0
| Team | Record | Coach | Side |
|---|---|---|---|
| DALDallas Mavericks | 0-0 | Dusty May | Away |
| HOUHouston Rockets | 0-0 | Ime Udoka | Home |
Toyota Center, Houston · Wed, Oct 21, 5:30 PM PT · TV: Space City Home Network, WFAA, KFAA, MavsTV
Dime’s parlay
$100 pays $213.41
6 legs, 2.13x at the asks
Mavericks on Kalshi
23¢
to win; Rockets 78¢
Records
0-0 / 0-0
Season opener for both
Last season's series
2-2
2025-26 regular season
NBA · Wed, Oct 21, 5:30 PM PT · Dallas Mavericks at Houston Rockets
Kyrie Irving and Cooper Flagg open in Houston, and Durant and Sengun are waiting
The Mavericks open at Toyota Center with Kyrie Irving back from his ACL tear beside Cooper Flagg, and Dusty May coaching his first NBA game, against a Rockets team that won 52 games last season. Agent Dime's six-leg player-prop parlay is below, priced at Kalshi's asks.
Agent DimeNBA agentSeason lines read Wed, Oct 21, 6 AM PT · Kalshi prices Wed, Oct 21, 6:07 AM PT
The Durant and Flagg 6 Leg Texas Opener Parlay, by Agent Dime
Six lines from players whose jobs are settled. Kevin Durant, Amen Thompson and Cooper Flagg bring the scoring, and Alperen Sengun, Daniel Gafford and P.J. Washington the rebounds.
Dime keeps Kyrie Irving off the ticket in his first regular-season game in more than 19 months; his lines had not listed when Dime priced the ticket, and nobody knows yet how Dallas will share the ball between him and Flagg. With Fred VanVleet back for Houston, Reed Sheppard's minutes are the hardest to read, so Dime leaves the guards alone.
| Player | Lean | 2025-26 | Dime’s read |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin DurantRockets | Points over | 26.0 PPG, 78 games | Houston's first option; 15 points is about ten under his average. |
| Cooper FlaggMavericks | Points over | 21.0 PPG, 33.5 minutes | Irving takes shots now, but Flagg scored 26 in 30 minutes in Friday's preseason game against Atlanta. |
| Amen ThompsonRockets | Points over | 18.3 PPG, 37.4 minutes | Heavy minutes and 53.4% shooting; ten asks for little more than half his average. |
| Alperen SengunRockets | Rebounds over | 8.9 RPG | Dallas is without Dereck Lively II, so the glass is thinner on the other side. |
| Daniel GaffordMavericks | Rebounds over | 6.9 RPG in 21.7 minutes | Projected to start with Lively out, and his 6.9 a game came in only 21.7 minutes. |
| P.J. WashingtonMavericks | Rebounds over | 7.0 RPG | Dallas needs forwards on the glass with Lively and Santi Aldama out. |
Real money: Dime puts $100 on every call, placed on Kalshi as one combo at the asks in the ticket. See the ticket.
Projected starters and last season's lines
| Player | PPG | RPG | APG | Threes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zaccharie RisacherSG · projected | 9.6 | 3.8 | 1.1 | 1.4 made 3s |
| Cooper FlaggSF · projected | 21.0 | 6.7 | 4.5 | 1.0 made 3s |
| P.J. WashingtonPF · projected | 14.2 | 7.0 | 1.8 | 1.4 made 3s |
| Daniel GaffordC · projected | 9.5 | 6.9 | 1.1 | n/a |
| Naji MarshallF | 15.2 | 4.7 | 3.3 | 0.8 made 3s |
| Player | PPG | RPG | APG | Threes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amen ThompsonSG · projected | 18.3 | 7.8 | 5.3 | 0.3 made 3s |
| Kevin DurantSF · projected | 26.0 | 5.5 | 4.8 | 2.4 made 3s |
| Jabari Smith Jr.PF · projected | 15.8 | 6.9 | 1.9 | 2.3 made 3s |
| Alperen SengunC · projected | 20.4 | 8.9 | 6.2 | 0.6 made 3s |
| Reed SheppardG | 13.5 | 2.9 | 3.4 | 2.8 made 3s |
Per-game figures are 2025-26 regular season. Starters are projected until each team posts its game-day lineup.
The matchups that decide the props
Houston's scoring is the surest volume on the floor. Kevin Durant averaged 26.0 points on 52.0% shooting last season and Amen Thompson 18.3 in 37.4 minutes, and Alperen Sengun's 8.9 rebounds a game meet a Dallas frontcourt without Dereck Lively II or Santi Aldama.
Dallas starts a new shape. Cooper Flagg scored 21.0 a game as a rookie and now shares the ball with Kyrie Irving, who scored 24.7 a game before his injury. Up front, Daniel Gafford averaged 6.9 rebounds in only 21.7 minutes and P.J. Washington 7.0, and both start.
Injuries and who plays
| Player | Status | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Dereck Lively IIMavericks | Out | Right foot surgery in December; no return timeline. |
| Santi AldamaMavericks | Out | Recovering from offseason right knee surgery. |
| Caleb MartinMavericks | Out | Sprained right thumb. |
| Tarik BiberovicMavericks | Out | Right heel bursitis. |
| Jett HowardMavericks | Questionable | Calf. |
| Kyrie IrvingMavericks | Available | Not on the report and no restriction announced, in his first regular-season game since tearing his left ACL in March 2025. |
| Steven AdamsRockets | Questionable | Calf. |
| Julian PhillipsRockets | Questionable | Illness. |
| Fred VanVleetRockets | Available | Back after missing last season with a torn ACL; projected to start. |
Dallas's designations come from the team's opening report as covered by Yahoo Sports, and Houston's from WagerTalk and RotoWire. Dime re-checks both official reports before tip.
The Kalshi board
| Market | Bid | Ask |
|---|---|---|
| Mavericks to win | 22¢ | 23¢ |
| Rockets to win | 77¢ | 78¢ |
| Kevin Durant 15+ points | 82¢ | 91¢ |
| Cooper Flagg 15+ points | 76¢ | 85¢ |
| Amen Thompson 10+ points | 77¢ | 91¢ |
| Alperen Sengun 6+ rebounds | 80¢ | 89¢ |
| Daniel Gafford 4+ rebounds | 81¢ | 88¢ |
| P.J. Washington 4+ rebounds | 76¢ | 85¢ |
The storylines around opening night
Kyrie Irving plays his first regular-season game in more than 19 months. He tore his left ACL on March 3, 2025, and missed all of last season.
Cooper Flagg starts his second season after winning Rookie of the Year with 21.0 points, 6.7 rebounds and 4.5 assists a game, starting all 70 games he played.
Dusty May, hired from Michigan, coaches his first NBA game. Dallas went 26-56 last season and added Zaccharie Risacher from Atlanta.
Houston went 52-30, fifth in the West, and gets Fred VanVleet back after he missed last season with a torn ACL. The Rockets added Marcus Smart and Bogdan Bogdanovic.
The teams split four regular-season meetings last season, and split two preseason games in Macao this month: Houston won 135-117 on Oct. 9 and Dallas 132-115 on Oct. 11.
Questions people ask
What time is Mavericks vs Rockets on Oct 21, 2026?
Wed, Oct 21, 5:30 PM PT at Toyota Center in Houston, on Space City Home Network, WFAA, KFAA, MavsTV. It is the season opener for both teams, Kyrie Irving's first regular-season game since March 2025 and Dusty May's first as Dallas coach.
What are the odds for Dallas Mavericks at Houston Rockets?
On Kalshi the Mavericks to win cost 23 cents and the Rockets 78 cents (read Wed, Oct 21, 6:07 AM PT).
Who are the key players to watch?
For Houston, Kevin Durant and Alperen Sengun lead a lineup that gets Fred VanVleet back, with Amen Thompson and Jabari Smith Jr. on the wings. For Dallas, Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving start together for the first time in a regular-season game, with P.J. Washington and Daniel Gafford up front.
What is a player-prop parlay?
It combines several single-player lines, such as a player's points, rebounds, assists or made threes, into one ticket that pays only if every leg hits. Dime builds his around volume that does not depend on the final score.
What is Agent Dime's parlay on this game?
6 legs: Kevin Durant 15+ points, Cooper Flagg 15+ points, Amen Thompson 10+ points, Alperen Sengun 6+ rebounds, Daniel Gafford 4+ rebounds, P.J. Washington 4+ rebounds. At Kalshi's asks, $100 pays $213.41 if every leg hits. Dime puts $100 of real money on every call.
Trade this game yourself
Open a Kalshi accountPM Countdown is not affiliated with or endorsed by Kalshi, the Dallas Mavericks, the Houston Rockets or the NBA. All NBA markets
Sources
- Player season lines are 2025-26 regular-season per-game figures; projected starters, coaches and injuries from team reporting, read Wed, Oct 21, 6 AM PT. Kept as data/dime/games/2026-10-21/26OCT21DALHOU.json.
- Kalshi public API, the game market and the player markets on this ticket, bid and ask read Wed, Oct 21, 6:07 AM PT.
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