The Denver Nuggets and Cleveland Cavaliers will face off on Thursday night at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse.
The Nuggets are coming off a 118-109 win over the Dallas Mavericks, while the Cavs are coming off a 118-112 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.
Denver leads the Western Conference with a 41-18 record, while Cleveland is the No. 4 seed in the Eastern Conference with a 38-23 record.
The Nuggets have been strong on the road this season, going 14-14, while the Cavs have been dominant at home, going 25-6.
Denver won the first meeting between these two teams on January 6, covering as 5.5-point home favorites in a victory where the 221.5 Over hit.
Injury List
The Nuggets will be without Aaron Gordon (rib) and Jamal Murray (knee) is doubtful, while the Cavs will be without Ricky Rubio (knee).
Prediction
We predict the final score to be Nuggets 112, Cavs 118.
Moneyline
Our pick for this game is the CAVALIERS (-140). Cleveland has been dominant at home this season and the Nuggets will be without two key players.
Against The Spread
Taking CAVALIERS -2.5 (-112) is the wisest move. Gordon won’t be available for the Nuggets to help guard the talented Cavaliers frontcourt pair of F Evan Mobley and C Jarrett Allen. The Cavaliers are 20-10-1 ATS at home and have won 7 of their last 8 games after losing an ATS contest.
Over/Under
We are picking the OVER 223.5 (-108). Both of these teams rank in the top 10 in offensive rating even though the Cavs play at the NBA’s slowest tempo.
Cleveland converts 48.9% of its goals, while Denver also makes 51.2% of its attempts (best in the NBA) (5th-best).
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