The struggling Denver Nuggets get some relief tonight when forward Carmelo Anthony returns to the lineup in the Denver Pepsi Center against the Memphis Grizzlies after serving his 15 games suspension. The Nuggets have lost eight of the 15 games they played since Anthony, the NBA scoring leader, has been out of the lineup.
Tonight things should look up with Anthony and recently acquired Allen Iverson take to the court for the first time together. With the acquisition of Iverson, the Nuggets now have the league’s most prolific scoring tandem. As of today, the two rank first and third in the NBA in scoring, with Anthony at 31.6 points per game and Iverson close behind him at 29.5. Bet on the NBA at Nine.com and receive a $500 bonus!
If they can finish one-two in scoring at the end of the season, Anthony and Iverson will become the first set of teammates to do so since the 1982-83 season, when coincidentally Alex English and Kiki Vandeweghe of the Denver Nuggets finished first and second. Only once in NBA history have two teammates ever managed to average at least 30 points per game for an entire season, with that being Elgin Baylor and Jerry West of the Los Angeles Lakers in 1961-62. Iverson who scored 44 points vs. Seattle on Dec. 28 and Anthony put up 42 points at Boston on Dec. 15 to become the first Nuggets teammates to both record 40-point scoring performances in the same season since Antonio McDyess and Nick Van Exel did so during the 2000-01 season.
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The offshore oddsmakers seem to like having Anthony back in the lineup and especially teaming up with Iverson. The Nuggets have been installed the favorite with a double-digit chalk on the side bet (-11) tonight when they take on the Grizzlies in the Pepsi Center. Defense is not expected to be much of a factor with the total set at a whopping 233 points. Currently the betting trend shows 70 percent of the public like the UNDER in this one.
