The Denver Nuggets host the Los Angeles Clippers in the fourth and final meeting of the regular season tonight at Ball Arena. Denver lost the first two meetings but won the most recent one handily, 120-98 back on December 13th. The Clippers look like they’ll have Kawhi Leonard available for this game, while the status of MVP Nikola Jokic is still up in the air due to a non-Covid illness. With Aaron Gordon also still sidelined (at least as of the injury report this morning) it will be up to the other Nuggets to pick up the slack defensively and to get organized on offense.
Denver is coming off a hard-fought loss to the Boston Celtics last night, while the Clippers lost a heartbreaker 108-106 to the Timberwolves on Monday. Normally this would be a game where Denver would try to run the Clippers early and let the altitude take effect down the stretch, but Denver might not have the legs for that themselves tonight. With a perfect record on the second night of a back-to-back this season, though, expect Denver to be locked in regardless of who suits up for them as they try to even the season series with a Clippers team they might be fighting for playoff seeding later in the year.
The Essentials
Who: Denver Nuggets (20-15) vs Los Angeles Clippers (20-16)
When: 7:00PM MST
Where: Ball Arena, Denver CO
How to watch/listen: Denver Stiffs does not condone piracy. Altitude TV where available. NBA League Pass for those not in the Nuggets market. Altitude 92.5 FM. Say you have Nikola Jokic’s IV bag so he can play tonight.
Rival Blog: 213 Hoops
Injury report: Nikola Jokic – questionable (non-Covid illness), Aaron Gordon – out (calf strain), Vlatko Cancar – out (the worst luck ever and also knee surgery), DaRon Holmes II – out (Achilles); Cam Christie – out (G-League Assignment), Trentyn Flowers – out (two-way), Kai Jones – out (two-way), P.J. Tucker – out (undying hatred)
The Three Things
The thing to watch for: Familiarity breeds contempt
The Nuggets saw the Clippers in the preseason. They’ve already played them 3 times, and the 4th comes in just game 36 for Denver. There isn’t any team in the league they know better than these Clippers, which also works in reverse. There are not a lot of tricks left in the bag, although the uncertainty around Jokic – because even if he plays there’s no telling how effective he will be – definitely throws a wrench in the predictability of the Nuggets. Last night they got up 36 three-pointers against a Boston squad that almost always outshoots its opponents from deep, so Denver has proven a willingness to change the formula when the MVP isn’t out there. Despite Kawhi’s likely return, it feels like Denver and the status of its star will dictate the way this game is played.
The thing to remember: 7-0
The Nuggets this year are undefeated with no rest. They may not always show up for the first half of the back-to-back but every team has had their full attention on the second half. The past is not predictive, but the Nuggets have repeatedly shown that they lock in and execute when tired. They ran out of gas at the end of the Celtics loss last night, but that’s where they really miss the efficiency and execution of Nikola Jokic down the stretch. Whether he plays tonight or not, though, Denver is likely to give a very good effort against a team they know well.
The thing to bet: Denver Moneyline (+115)
Nuggets haven’t lost on a back-to-back yet! Just take the bet now, because if Jokic does suit up expect the payout to drop significantly.
