Nuggets vs Clippers Odds Preview: Bettors Should Back Healthy Nuggets
Clippers Dealing With Injuries to Paul George and Kawhi Leonard
The NBA season resumes on Friday after the associate took Thursday off for the Thanksgiving Holiday. There are 14 games on the slate, but we’re going to bring you a Nuggets vs Clippers odds preview. After getting off to somewhat of a slow start this season, the Clippers have turned things around as of late. They’re 11-8 on the season but are 3-2 in their last five games with wins over the Pistons, Spurs, and Jazz, and losses to the Mavericks and Warriors. The Nuggets are 11-7 on the year and are 2-3 in their last five games.
However, their two best players Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray spent some time in health and safety protocols, so those losses came while the team was shorthanded. This line opened at Nuggets -1.5 and has since moved to -3.5. Denver is -155 on the Moneyline while a win for the Clippers would pay out at +130. The total opened at 220 and has dropped a few points to 218.5. Let’s see where we can find some value in this matchup.
Game Information
Denver Nuggets (11-7) at Los Angeles Clippers (11-8)
Date, time (TV):
Location: Crypto.com
Our Nuggets vs Clippers odds preview starts by taking a look at why the betting line moved two points since opening in favor of the Nuggets. If both teams were at full strength this line likely would have favored Los Angeles by a point or two as the home team being both of these teams are pretty evenly matched.
However, the NBA injury report has the Clippers two best players, Kawhi Leonard and Paul George listed as questionable. Leonard is still taking games off for injury management after having ACL surgery last season while Paul George sat out of Wednesday’s game against the Warriors with a hamstring injury.
With the line moving in favor of Denver, it is likely that we see either Leonard or George continue to sit in this game. If the line keeps moving toward the Nuggets, then that would suggest that both players are likely going to be out.
With injury concerns for Los Angeles, our Nuggets vs Clippers odds preview has us leading toward laying the points with the away team. Denver’s offense has looked good this season when they are fully healthy. Back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic is a walking double-double and should be able to do some damage inside on Friday night. Denver is also ranked 7th in scoring with 114.8 points per game.
They’re shooting 49.3% from the field, which is good enough for 2nd in the league, and 40.1% from deep, good enough for 1st.
While the Clippers are the better defensive team, and an NBA betting trends this season has been to take the under in their games, we don’t think they’re going to be able to slow down Denver’s offense without both George and Leonard on the floor.
Therefore, our best bet for this game is to take the Nuggets to cover -3.5 on the road in Los Angeles.
For more stories similar to this Nuggets vs Clippers odds preview, head over to PointSpread.com.
Follow us on Twitter
