The Denver Nuggets have lost three games in a row, something that hasn’t happened since the end of January. They have not had a four game losing streak this season. Putting that to the test tonight will be the Indiana Pacers who are on the opposite side of the spectrum with their current three game winning streak (though largely against bad teams). The two teams have nearly identical records and both are currently seeded fourth in their respective conferences. Should be a good one tonight.
The Essentials
Who: Denver Nuggets (47-31) vs Indiana Pacers (46-31)
When: 6PM MDT
Where: The Can. Denver, CO.
How to watch/listen: Denver Stiffs does not condone piracy, unless it’s the romanticized 17th century type. KTVD My20, Altitude+, NBA League Pass if you are not in the Nuggets market, Altitude Radio 92.5FM. Show up claiming to be a voodoo priest who can cure all of Denver’s nagging injuries.
Rival Blog: Fieldhouse Files
The Matchup
| Position | Nuggets | Pacers | Advantage |
| PG | Jamal Murray | Tyrese Haliburton | Even |
| SG | Christian Braun | Andrew Nembhard | Nuggets |
| SF | Michael Porter Jr. | Aaron Nesmith | Nuggets |
| PF | Aaron Gordon | Obi Toppin | Nuggets |
| C | Nikola Jokic | Myles Turner | Nuggets |
| Bench | Russell Westbrook, Peyton Watson, DeAndre Jordan, Jalen Pickett | Benedict Mathurin, T.J. McConnell, Ben Sheppard, Jarace Walker | Pacers |
Injury report: Jamal Murray – questionable (hamstring), DaRon Holmes II – out (Achilles); Pascal Siakam – out (elbow), Isaiah Jackson – out (Achilles).
The Three Things
The thing to watch for: secondary scoring
Michael Malone said he wasn’t sure when Jamal Murray would play last game so I assume he plays tonight since Malone lies more in a press conference about player availability than a used car salesman trying to close a sale. Whether Jamal plays or not the Nuggets desperately need to give Nikola Jokic some help on offense. Joker has been carrying the Nuggets offense pretty much single handedly and it’s a primary factor in Denver’s current losing streak. Jamal, Michael Porter Jr., Aaron Gordon, Christian Braun, and yes even Russell Westbrook, at least two of these guys need be above 20 points tonight to give Nikola a break and give Denver a legitimate chance to win.
The thing to remember: Indiana doesn’t have much to play for
The Eastern Conference playoff slate is largely set and the Pacers are close to being locked into the four seed. They are three games up on the fifth seeded Milwaukee Bucks while also being three games back of the third seeded New York Knicks. Pascal Siakam has been ruled out for this game to rest his elbow so the Pacers may be taking a give it the old college try approach tonight. After tonight they return home and can wrap up seeding against the bottom dwelling Washington Wizards and a Cleveland Cavaliers team with nothing left to play for.
The thing to bet: Aaron Gordon over 1.5 threes (+140)
AG would be the league leader in 3 point percentage if he had enough makes to qualify. He’ll need to make an average of three per game over the last four games to make that happen. That fact plus the +140 odds make me love this bet tonight.
