Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA – Photo by Icon sport
Nuggets vs Nets: Brooklyn is looking to end the losing streak
The Brooklyn Nets will host the Denver Nuggets on Friday night in the Barclays Center hoping to end the four-game losing streak. The Nuggets won the last two times they played in BKY and 4 of the last 5 against the Nets.
Can the Nuggets get on top in the West?
The defending champion Denver Nuggets are currently third in the Western Conference with a 19-10 record, three games behind the leading Minnesota Timberwolves. The Nuggets lost some games that they should have won, especially on the road where they are 8-8, but as the season progresses, Mike Malone’s team is expected to pick up their form and probably get on top of the conference.
The Nets defensive struggles
The Brooklyn Nets are in 9th place in the Eastern Conference with a 13-14 record. They have lost the last four games, and an interesting fact is that they allowed between 121 and 124 points in each of those four contests. That is more than their season average of 115.3 allowed points per game, which puts them 19th in the league. At the same time, the Nets are second in the league with 47.1 rebounds per game and 9th with 5.9 blocks per game.
Betting Trends
The Nuggets are 5-1 ATS in the last six games and 5-2 ATS in the last seven games on the road. They are also 4-1 ATS in the last five games against the Nets. Brooklyn is 1-5 ATS in their last six games and 1-4 in their last five games against opponents from the Western Conference.
Can Nikola Jokic win another MVP?
The Nuggets center won the most prestigious individual award in 2021 and 2022 before finishing second in voting last season. The Serbian is having another impressive year averaging 26.5 points, 12.4 rebounds and 9.3 assists per game, which definitely look like MVP numbers. Whether he wins the award will mainly depend on how good the competition is and the Nuggets’ place in the standings.
Injury Reports
Vlatko Cancar is out for the Nuggets while the Nets will be without Ben Simmons, Lonnie Walker IV, and Dennis Smith Jr.
Prediction and Conclusion
The Denver Nuggets come in this game as a 4.5-point favorite. The Nuggets are not playing particularly well on the road this season, being only 50%. Still, they have been dominating the Nets in recent years, and the home team is struggling lately, losing four consecutive games. The Nets have a couple of injuries that shorten their rotation, which is another reason why they will struggle tonight. Nikola Jokic is absolutely unstoppable and will lead his team to another win covering the given spread.
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