Nikola Jokic playing tonight? Jamal Murray? Bradley Beal? Nuggets Suns injury report

The Denver Nuggets are immersed in a battle for the number one seed in the Western Conference that may go right down to the wire. They’re leading the conference for now, with a record of 51-21. But the Oklahoma City Thunder are hot on their heels at 50-21.

Wednesday night, the Nuggets will take on another team that is desperate for wins as they play host to the Phoenix Suns. Phoenix sits at 42-30, tied for seventh in the West. Like several other teams, the one that went all-in to combine Bradley Beal, Devin Booker, and Kevin Durant finds themselves battling just to avoid the play-in tournament.

The Suns are also one of only two teams to beat the Nuggets since the All-Star break, and the only one to do so in Denver. They pulled out a 117-107 win in overtime without Booker on March 5th.

The Nuggets will likely want some revenge in this one and will want to keep their lead in the conference, but the team is also trying to balance rest and health, especially for the star players. With just 10 games left in the regular season, the Nuggets have to take a cautious approach and focus on the big picture; repeating as champions.

Nuggets injury report

The big news on the Denver side is that Jamal Murray is questionable to play yet again. After missing the last two games with a sprained ankle, Murray is listed with right knee inflammation. There is still no reason for concern, but it’s at least something to monitor if he misses a third straight game.

Aaron Gordon, who missed Monday’s win against Memphis with a fascia strain is also listed as ‘Questionable’. Nikola Jokic (back/hip) and Michael Porter Jr. (illness) are both expected to suit up and listed as ‘Probable’. It will be interesting to see if MPJ addresses the media for the first time since his brother, Jontay Porter of the Raptors was implicated in a betting scandal.

Vlatko Cancar (knee) and Zeke Nnaji (adductor) remain ‘Out’ for Denver on Wednesday night.

Suns injury report

The Phoenix injury report is shorter but may prove more impactful as Bradley Beal (finger sprain) and Jusuf Nurkic (ankle) are both questionable to play. Without Nurkic battling with Jokic down low, the already thin Suns would be completely overmatched in size. Damion Lee (knee) is also ‘Out’.

Betting odds

The Nuggets are currently listed as 7.5-point home favorites and the total is 227.5 points.