Two teams in highly contrasting forms will go head to head at the Ball Arena on Wednesday as the Denver Nuggets entertain the challenge of the Philadelphia 76ers.
The home side have won six of their last seven matches leading up to this one, while the visitors make the journey aiming to avoid a seventh straight defeat.
Match preview
© Imago
Having cruised to a resounding 133-111 victory over the Miami Heat 48 hours earlier, the Denver Nuggets were too hot to handle for the Orlando Magic as they claimed a 113-100 triumph at the Amway Center on Monday.
Michael Malone's men narrowly trailed by one point after the first quarter but took control of proceedings over the subsequent 24 minutes to storm to a 16-point advantage, which proved to be unassailable down the stretch.
In a game that saw all five Nuggets starters reach double digits for points, Christian Braun tallied a team-high 20 points alongside reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, who also recorded 14 rebounds and 10 assists for his 18th triple-double of the season.
Since the introduction of Russell Westbrook to the lineup on a permanent basis, the Nuggets have overseen a huge change in fortune, winning 16 of the 21 games the veteran guard has started this term.
Sitting fourth in the Western Conference standings, the Nuggets are on course to make it through to the playoffs but will most likely have to concede the number one seed to the Oklahoma City Thunder for the second season running.
© Imago
The Philadelphia 76ers simply cannot catch a break at the moment off the back of yet another defeat last time out against a resurgent Milwaukee Bucks outfit in Monday's meeting at the Wells Fargo Center.
Largely handicapped by the absence of Joel Embiid and Paul George, Nick Nurse's men could not keep up with the offensive firepower posed by their opponents, who put on another splendid first-quarter display to get themselves in the driving seat.
Tallying his fourth-highest point tally of the campaign with 37, Tyrese Maxey was responsible for just over a third of his side's 109 points, shooting 14-28 from the field, including 6-15 from beyond the arc.
With a poor winning percentage of 36.6% after 41 games, the 76ers are well adrift of playoff contention as things stand, and barring a remarkable turnaround, a postseason berth looks to be out of reach.
Wednesday's trip to Colorado brings to an end a three-game road stretch for the away side, who will return to their home court for seven of their next eight games, either side of a visit to the United Center on January 26 to face off against the Chicago Bulls.
- W
- W
- W
- L
- W
- W
- L
- L
- L
- L
- L
- L
Team News
© Imago
Sixers duo KJ Martin and Jared McCain are currently sidelined through injury, but the former is drawing increasingly closer to a return to action after being recently cleared to resume some on-court work.
Kyle Lowry (hip), Andre Drummond (toe) and Caleb Martin (groin) are huge doubts to feature here, while the availability of Paul George and Guerschon Yabusele also hangs in the balance.
Vlatko Cancar is a guaranteed absentee for the Nuggets here having not featured since November as he continues rehabilitation following surgery to his knee.
The home side will also be without the services of DaRon Holmes II, who is ruled out with an ankle problem, while Payton Watson is a major doubt due to a head injury.
Denver Nuggets possible starting five:
Westbrook, Murray; Braun, Porter Jr.; Jokic
Philadelphia 76ers possible starting five:
Maxey, Gordon; Oubre, Council; Bona
We say: Nuggets to win by 10+ points
The Nuggets are starting to recapture the form that saw them win the 2023 NBA championship and will back themselves to emerge victorious here.
We can see the home side claiming a routine win at the sound of the final buzzer.
Adepoju Marvellous
