The high scoring Denver Nuggets host the Dirk-less Dallas Mavericks tonight. The Nuggets sit two games back from the Mavs and they’ll be looking to take advantage of the Mavs injury woes. The series is tied at one a piece. Oddsmakers at Bookmaker have the Nuggets as 9-point favs over the Mavs with the over/under listed at 215. Get your NBA Pick in now at Bookmaker.com
The Mavs aren’t sure when Dirk will be back, but they know he will surely be missed. They got a 103-90 home win against the Clippers Tuesday as 13 ½ point favs. Josh Howard had 32pts and went 15-of-15 from the free-throw line; Stackhouse added 20pts and Erick Dampier scored 19pts with 17 rebounds. The Mavs are 2-3 SU on the road in their last five, where they’ve averaged 101 PPG. Overall in their last five games they’ve averaged a low 94 PPG, their field goal percentage is at 44% and 3-point shooting has been 32%. On defense the Mavs have allowed 89 PPG in their last five and overall they give up a 6th ranked 95 PPG, but that’s with Dirk in the lineup. The Mavs sit in fourth place in the Southwest Standings and are in seventh place in the Western Playoff race, 4 ½ games back from New Orleans.
The Nuggets are in the midst of a three game winning streak and they’ve won six of their last ten games. They recently beat Memphis 120-106 as 9-point road favs. The Nuggets shot 50% from the field and scored at least 100 points, or more, for the 12th consecutive game, averaging more than 120 points over that span. Allen Iverson had 26pts and Carmelo Anthony added 23pts, but J.R. Smith came off the bench with 27pts. Smith scored 25 points in the fourth quarter and made seven 3-pointers in the period, when he shot 8-of-10 overall. The Nuggets have averaged 117 PPG in their last five games and their good for an overall 3rd ranked 109 PPG. On defense they’ve allowed an average 114 PPG in their last five and at home they allow an average 101 PPG. The Nuggets are in second place in the Northwest Standings, 3 ½ games behind Utah, and in the Western Playoff race they sit in ninth place. A win will put them in eighth place.
Recent Trends to Consider
- Mavericks are 1-6 ATS in their last 7 Thursday games.
- Mavericks are 0-4 ATS in their last 4 games overall.
- Mavericks are 0-5 ATS in their last 5 vs. Western Conference.
- Nuggets are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 after scoring 100 points or more in their previous game.
- Nuggets are 4-0 ATS in their last 4 vs. NBA Southwest.
- Nuggets are 8-0 ATS in their last 8 games as a home favorite of 5.0-10.5.
- Under is 11-4 in the last 15 meetings.
- Under is 5-2 in the last 7 meetings in Denver.
GAME: Dallas Mavericks (45-26) at Denver Nuggets (43-28)
DATE/TIME: Thursday, March 27 – 8:00 PM EST
LINE: Bookmaker TOTAL: 215
PICK: Denver -9
The Bottom Line: The Mavs are going to be hurting without Nowitzki 23 PPG, going against one of the highest scoring teams of late. Get your NBA Pick in now at Bookmaker.com!
