The Denver Nuggets are looking for one more win before they dig into the turkey and yams as they visit the Utah Jazz right before Thanksgiving. The Nuggets are trying to rebound from an abysmal performance in a loss to the New York Knicks, while the Jazz are looking to continue their tank toward the top of the 2025 draft for a much-needed talent infusion. The Jazz will be down a few players, and that potentially includes their leading scorer Lauri Markkanen who banged knees with San Antonio Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama in Utah’s double-digit loss on Tuesday night.
The Nuggets are an enigma this year, at times playing some incredible basketball led by an all-time great start to the season from Nikola Jokic, but at other points completely failing to show up. This includes two brutal showings against the Dallas Mavericks and the aforementioned Knicks who both showed up a listless Nuggets squad from the jump. Denver came up just short in a rally against the Mavericks but never even tried against the Knicks, and while Utah should be an easier matchup, Denver has lost 15 of its last 17 games on the road against Utah going back a decade. The Nuggets need to show up early in this one and stick around for the finish, or their holiday feast will taste like ash.
The Essentials
Who: Denver Nuggets (9-7) at Utah Jazz (4-13)
When: 7:00PM MST
Where: Delta Center, Salt Lake City UT
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’re at the game from Vegas to make sure Utah’s odds for the first pick in the draft stay excellent.
Rival Blog: SLC Dunk
Injury report: Vlatko Cancar – out (the worst luck ever and also a knee), Aaron Gordon – out (calf), Daron Holmes II – out (achilles), Jalen Pickett – out (G-League), Spencer Jones – out (G-League); Lauri Markkanen – questionable (knee contusion), Jordan Clarkson – out (left plantar fasciitis), Kyle Filipowski – out (left lower leg inflammation), Taylor Hendricks – out (right fibula fracture)
The Three Things
The thing to watch for: Does Denver actually care?
The Nuggets have frankly played like ass in far too many games already this season. Nearly all their wins have been thanks to Jokic dragging them to victory with the rest of the supporting cast providing listless and intermittent help at best. MPJ was showing up as the most consistent other player, but no one showed up to that Knicks game and Jokic is unlikely to get it done alone. Denver sucks in Salt Lake, and the Nuggets need to show up with some fire to both get the win and start getting the wins they should get in a very tough Western Conference. The Jazz are in tank mode and the Nuggets need to help them out – the same Knicks who just smashed Denver were coming off a loss to Utah, so it’s not like the Jazz can’t take the win if it’s offered to them. The Nuggets need to close that door hard and get the dub.
The thing to remember: It’s the last game this month
Denver doesn’t play again until December, taking a break until Sunday to be with their loved ones for the holiday. This is the fifth game in seven nights for the Nuggets, but Utah is on the second night of a back-to-back so it’s not like they’re rested either. Tired legs or not, the Nuggets need to actually play defense, run in transition, and finish. This is a gut check after an absolute failure in their last game, and good teams take care of bad ones. The Jazz are a pretty good rebounding team that doesn’t do a lot else, but if Denver concedes the glass like they have been wont to do this year in losses then it gives a poor shooting team the chance to finish at the rim. Denver cannot afford to get run on yet again, especially if they then wind up leaving the three point line open like they have been. On the eve of a nice break it’s up to Denver to make a concerted effort to take care of this game instead of looking ahead. There’s been too much looking past the current obstacle already this year.
The thing to bet: Over 233 points (-110)
Denver’s gone over in 11 of its last 14, mostly because they are trying to outscore teams instead of defend. Utah is not a high-paced squad but they’ve scored 110+ points in 7 of their last 9, which means Denver would be looking at 123 to hit the mark. Jokic will be ready. Denver can score, and if they’re looking to get right it feels much better to put the ball in the hoop than to make defensive rotations. I expect a high-scoring game and a Denver victory, so take the over.
