The primetime slate for what could’ve been a marquee matchup between two of the greatest players of all-time is, like so many games this season, getting derailed by key injuries. Jimmy Butler’s out for the season, and Steph Curry was a scratch as of yesterday. Then word dropped at 10:45 a.m. that the Warriors new acquisition, Kristaps Porzingis, is also being pulled.
It seems likely that the Nuggets will hold out Murray now, who’s dealing with a number of dings including a minor hamstring issue. Look for Christian Braun and Cam Johnson to get a lot of run as they continue to work their way back into midseason form, and hopefully the same killer mentality on display in Friday night’s drubbing of Portland puts this game out of reach quickly.
The Basics
Who: Denver Nuggets (36-21) at Golden State Warriors (29-27)
When: 1:30 PM MST
Where: Chase Center, San Francisco
How to watch/listen: ABC / ESPN / Altitude Radio
Rival Blog: Golden State of Mind
Injury Report | Jamal Murray—questionable (hamstring); Nuggets: Aaron Gordon—out (hamstring); Jalen Pickett—out (knee); Peyton Watson—out (hamstring)
Golden State Warriors: Stephen Curry—out (right patellofemoral pain syndrome); Kristaps Porzingis—out (Achilles); Jimmy Butler III—out (ACL); Seth Curry—out (back)
The Three Things
The thing to watch for: Draymond vs. Jokic
With his team being massively disadvantaged in primetime, the game could turn into the Draymond Green show. The defensive stalwart and provocateur certainly doesn’t shy away from a challenge, nor does he seem to enjoy anything as much as trying to take a bite out of rival superstars. The longer the Nuggets let the Warriors hang around, the more annoying Draymond will probably get as he tries to muck up the pace as much as possible.
Jokic, of course, has never had problems with Green, who’s just too undersized to make 15 feel him. According to Stat Muse, Draymond is has been food the last 10 games, averaging a near triple double with 29/13/8 on good efficiency. With no adequate help coming in this one, it’s unlikely the lop-sided trend reverses if the Nuggets handle their business.
The thing to remember: The Nuggets are a bad clutch team right now
This team has consistently failed to deliver in one-possession games this season, a trend that continued this week against the Clippers. Much has been said about it, much is probably noise, and mean reversion is likely coming. But maybe just don’t let an outmatched team hang around in this one—for the fans’ sake, at least?
The thing to bet: Jokic triple double
Hard to imagine this not being a positive R:R. No Steph, no Butler, and an undersized big that has never given Jokic much trouble. With Murray likely to rest, the offensive burden will be squarely on the Joker, and the Warriors don’t have the size to keep him off the glass. Look for a big game from the BITW, assuming the Nuggets don’t have a 30-point lead at the half.
