There’s nothing like a Thursday night watching a good ol’ fashioned basketball game between two-thirds of the NBA’s Texas Triangle.

And for all ya’ll who have no idea what that is, it’s a game between the Houston Rockets and the Dallas Mavericks. And while the San Antonio Spurs still is the team at the top of that triangle, the Rockets and the Mavericks are not that far behind from the four-time champs. They will have their first meeting of the 2008-09 NBA basketball season this Thursday and yes, you can expect a shootout.

The Houston Rockets will have new firepower with the addition of Ron Artest to ease the scoring load from Yao Ming and Tracy McGrady. The Rockets traded two first round draft picks just to get this guy and for their sake, let’s hope it all works out.

And since Tracy McGrady has been spending so much time in the injury list the last few years, the Rockets have also signed another guard / forward in the 36-year-old Brent Barry. They clearly want to finally get the fuck out of the first round since Hakeem Olajuwon called it quits and they’re hoping the moves they made will be able to accomplish that.

Because obviously, Yao Ming ain’t a Hakeem Olajuwon just yet.

The Dallas Mavericks, on the other hand, will have a new coach on their sideline in Rick Carlisle. After suffering an early exit from the playoffs last season, the Mavericks are hoping Carlisle will be able to bring them back to the top of the West.

‘’I believe there is a lot of motivation, just off the disappointment of the last couple years and from the standpoint of what the public opinion is about the team,'’ Carlisle said. ‘’That we’re old, we’re emotionally scarred, not tough, all that kind of stuff.'’

The Mavs, through the leadership of German sensation Dirk Nowitzki, are hoping they would be able to change all that this season.

Up and down the roster, the Mavericks have players who have something to prove. Jason Kidd is trying to show he’s got something left in the tank in a season when he’ll turn 36 and is trying to earn next year’s contract. Nowitzki, on the other hand, wants to prove he can win the big one after coming so close back in 2006, when the Miami Heat literally screwed them over.

Who will win the 2009 NBA Finals? Bodog sportsbook has the odds.

Boston Celtics 4.00

Los Angeles Lakers 4.50

Detroit Pistons 9.00

San Antonio Spurs 9.00

Want more odds? Visit Bodog for more basketball betting odds. Want to watch the NBA live? Get NBA tickets online now.

Dallas Mavericks Houston Rockets