Nuggets vs. Trail Blazers Pick
Are the host Portland Trail Blazers going to rebound from a tough home loss to down the Denver Nuggets tonight at 10:30PM ET?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Trail Blazers are listed as a 6-point favorite on the spread line. The over-under has not been set yet.
Denver comes in with a 16-15 record overall and 14-14-3 ATS after a 112-104 home loss to the Timberwolves. Portland is 16-15 overall and 14-14-3 ATS following a 93-91 home loss to the Spurs. The Trail Blazers won the first meeting this season by a count of 99-82 in Portland on Nov. 13. The Trail Blazers have gone 4-1 straight up and 3-2 ATS in five meetings since the start of last season. The over has gone 4-1.
The Nuggets were paced by Jamal Murray with 30 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals in the loss to Minnesota. Nikola Jokic contributed 22 points, six rebounds, four assists and two blocked shots. Trey Lyles added 15 points. Denver was outscored 32-20 in the fourth quarter.
Damian Lillard led the way with 17 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals in the loss to San Antonio. He tweaked his hamstring in the fourth quarter and will not play against Denver. Jusuf Nurkic chipped in with 15 points and six rebounds. Evan Turner put in 14 points. Shabazz Napier added 14 points and two assists off the bench. Portland shot only 38-of-96 from the floor and 6-of-25 from 3-point range in the loss.
The over is 8-2 in the last 10 meetings. Denver is 4-0 ATS in its last four Friday games.
Bet on Nuggets vs. Trail Blazers
Portland should find scoring easier to come by against Denver than it did San Antonio. With Lillard out, the pressure falls on CJ McCollum and Nurkic as their usage rates will increase on the offensive end. Nurkic will also go toe-to-toe with his former teammate in Jokic here. Expect Nurkic to play motivated and be a huge factor as the Blazers cover the spread.
NBA DAILY PREDICTION: PORTLAND TRAIL BLAZERS -6