NBA: San Antonio Spurs vs. Denver Nuggets Preview, Odds, Prediction

Back-to-back matches are always interesting, and there won’t be any different this time once the San Antonio Spurs meet with the Denver Nuggets. This Wednesday night, the Nuggets defeated Gregg Popovich’s side, who is now eager to get even with the hosts. It was a very interesting matchup in which Denver came back in the third period, breaking the guests’ resistance and routinely closing the event. This is a very important clash for both sides and their playoff ambitions. While Nuggets seek to improve their position and jump over the LA Clippers on the No.3, the Spurs look to get that eight spot and secure themselves a better starting spot in the play-in tournament.

Preview

San Antonio Spurs (24-25, +230) have four losses in a row, and nine in the past 11 events. There wasn’t a worse time for their form to drop because now the Spurs sit outside the playoff zone. If it weren’t for the play-in tournament, Gregg Popovich’s guys would have pretty slim chances of reaching the postseason.

It seems that the management decided to sacrifice this season and prepare for an aggressive free agency that would see the Spurs pursuing a lot of big names on the market. But that is a subject for some other talk.

San Antonio lost to the Atlanta Hawks and the Indiana Pacers following OT, and after that against the Cavaliers. All these three games were at the AT&T Center. Interestingly, the Spurs played nine consecutive matches at home and won just two of them, all that in the crucial part of the season. We simply can’t believe that such a thing happened to Gregg Popovich’s team. So they are in a pretty bad place right now.

Denver Nuggets (33-18, -270) won seven straight and is on fire right now. Nikola Jokic chases the MVP honors, while Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. step in when needed to replace the Serb. And to be honest, these two guys became the dominant force in the team, with the Joker handing them two the leading roles in some of the victories during this stretch.

Jokic posts 26.3 points per game, with 10.9 boards and 8.7 assists each night, and is by far the best player in the NBA when looking at pure stats. Also, when looking at the impact on the team, the 26-year old probably has the biggest significance on the performances compared to all other rivals in the MVP race.

His Nuggets are half a game behind the Clippers in the West standings and 3.5 behind the Suns on the second spot, hoping that they might take over at least one of these two rivals.

Head to Head Games

The Nuggets beat the Spurs two days ago, 106-96, despite being behind 10 points in the third period. Jokic had 25 points and 10 assists, being one rebound short of another triple-double. Michael Porter Jr. delivered a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds.

Derrick White and Dejounte Murray both had 18 buckets apiece for the Spurs.

Prediction

After all seen in previous games, Denver should win this match and continue its victorious stretch. The home team is in much better shape, already proving that they have what it takes to beat San Antonio.

Pick: Denver