NBA: Denver Nuggets vs Portland Trail Blazers Preview, Odds, Prediction

The Denver Nuggets and the Portland Trail Blazers meet at the Moda Center to decide many things about the Western Conference playoffs. Right now, the Blazers and the Lakers have the same record, but the franchise from Oregon holds the tiebreaker. Meanwhile, the Nuggets and the Clippers share the No.3 seed, but Denver has a better head-to-head record, which gives them an edge in this case. So, both teams need a win to keep their current positions.

Preview

Denver Nuggets (47-24, +333) have the best player in the league this year – Nikola Jokic. It is obvious now that the Serb will win the MVP award without any problems, despite the “hostility” of the media and their attempts to put other players in focus.

Joker and his guys won three matches in a row, all on the road before tonight’s event. The first victory took place in Charlotte, then the Nuggets posted a win in Minnesota before routing the Pistons in Michigan, 104-91, in the latest event this Friday.

The Joker posted a triple-double in this event, with 20 points, 15 rebounds, and 11 assists, playing some 26 minutes. Marcus Howard, the young point guard, shined in this event with 20 buckets, his career-high, while Monte Morris added 15 off the bench.

Portland Trail Blazers (41-30, -450) lost a thriller in Phoenix against the Suns, 118-117, which put them in this tough situation. Previously, the Blazers had five consecutive victories, nine in 10 matches.

Damian Lillard is on fire over the past several weeks, scoring 30+ points in the most recent seven matches. Against the Suns, the Dame had 41 buckets, shooting 16-for-23, with five assists and rebounds. The Blazers’ best player had help from CJ McCollum who scored 27 points, hitting five threes.

Portland used just 8 players in this match, and that was Terry Stotts’ decision. We can’t say whether he rested some of the players or cut down the rotation, yet that is something the time will tell. Overall, Portland had good shooting percentages against the Suns, 54.3% from the field, and 45.5% for three. But the main problem for the guests in that one was the rebounding, having collected just 33 boards throughout 48 minutes, one offensive, which is pretty much ridiculous.

Head to Head Games

The Nuggets and the Blazers played twice this season, and on both occasions, the team from Denver got away with narrow wins. The first game in Denver saw the home team’s victory, 111-106, while the second ended with even more drama as the Nuggets edged out Portland 106-105.

Preview

Our pick here is Portland, and here is why. Denver’s win would allow the Lakers to be No.6, which means that the Nuggets would face the champions already in the first round. And they surely wouldn’t want that to happen. On the other side, the Blazers need to win to avoid the play-in tournament and further complications.

So, Portland’s win here would benefit both sides. It is a joint effort of these two sides to make things much easier for them and much tougher for the Lakers. This might sound a bit odd, but it really is like that.