The Denver Nuggets prepare for yet another preseason matchup with the Boston Celtics in Abu Dhabi. Denver lost to Boston in the same circumstances just two days ago, but the teams will put on one more display for the benefit of furthering the game internationally before heading back state side. It’ll be another chance to look at how Denver plays with their new starting two guard and how they incorporate veterans Russell Westbrook and Dario Saric with their bench. One this is for sure, Nikola Jokic will make it look easy at times and inspire hope that, no matter what happens with the other rotation pieces, Denver will still have a good shot at the title this year because they have the best player on earth.
The Basics
Who: Denver Nuggets (0-1) vs Boston Celtics (1-0)
When: 8AM MDT
Where: The house that oil built. Abu Dhabi, UAE.
How to watch/listen: Unless you live in the Boston market, I’m afraid the only option to watch this one is to sail the high seas.
Rival blog: Celtics Blog
The Three Things
The thing to remember: Christian Braun vs Julian Strawther is supposedly as competition
Braun got the start in preseason game one as expected, but Michael Malone was quick to point out on media day that it is an open competition between Strawther and Braun for the starter role. If Braun is once again getting minutes with the starters then it would seem like the competition may not be as close as coach would like us to believe. If this is truly a battle for a starting spot then I’d imagine there’d be value gained from now seeing how Julian performs with the starters against the exact same team that Christian started against. I don’t expect that to happen though, I’ve thought from day one that the starter job was CB’s to lose and back to back starts to open the preseason only further cements that belief.
The thing to watch: minutes
It’ll be interesting to see if Malone has a longer leash with the starters this game. None of Denver’s starting five saw minutes in the second half which isn’t unusual for the first preseason game, but coach may elect to get his starters some time to practice coming back out of the locker room and still playing at a high level to start the second half. I’m guessing that’ll happen today with the starting group getting one shift in the second half before giving way to the second unit to finish the third quarter with the deep reserves coming in during the fourth. The Abu Dhabi factor is a curveball though. Obviously these preseason games are more taxing than a standard one that doesn’t involve international travel so the smartest move may be to just limit the starters to one half again.
The thing to bet: get help
I will once again use the first preseason game I cover to remind you that you should not gamble on preseason games. The spread in this game is 3.5 points….how do you feel about Trey Alexander, P.J. Hall, Jahmir young and…checks notes…Spencer Jones beating that deep in the fourth? If you tried to seriously answer that question in any way you’re a sicko…who might have a gambling problem.
