Maybe the Denver Nuggets are starting to build some traction again after taking their foot off the gas a little bit. Denver is 48-24 and 3.5 games up on Memphis for the top spot in the Western Conference. They lost four straight before bouncing back to take two of their last three games. Now, they welcome the Washington Wizards into town.
Washington has lost three in a row including last night to Orlando, 122-112 at home. On short rest, they’re back in action. Let’s check out the odds for this one.
Nuggets vs. Wizards odds, spread and total
Nuggets vs. Wizards prediction and pick
I was quick to jump on the fade Denver train when this stretch of struggles began, but I’m not certain how quick I’ll be jumping off. The four-game losing streak began seven games ago, and when looking at Denver’s last seven, they’re 29th in defensive rating, 120.5. They can’t stop anybody right now. Defense has been a problem for them all season, pretty much the only one the best team in the West has had, and it’s a big issue right now.
Another issue is the play of Jamal Murray. He’s supposed to be this team’s second best player, but over this 2-5 stretch he’s shooting 39.7% from the field on 17.3 field goal attempts with 3.0 turnovers a game. For the season he’s shooting 45% on 16.3 attempts with 2.2 turnovers. Maybe this is a blip on the radar, but it’s something to keep an eye out for.
While those are concerns long term, realistically, none of those things will matter tonight. This is a schedule loss for Washington. They have to travel from DC to Denver on 0 days rest and play in the altitude against Nikola Jokic and all of Denver’s off ball movement on offense. Good luck Wizards.
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