The Lede: Nuggets Fading
By Matt McEwan in NBA Basketball
Updated: January 17, 2018 at 9:39 am ESTPublished:
Don’t have time to read through 1,000 words, but need some informed betting tips? Here’s a quick rundown on today’s biggest sports story, and how it impacts the way you should bet. Miss yesterday’s? See it here.
The Nuggets Lose Two Straight; Eighth Seed Up for Grabs
A home-and-home with the Houston Rockets isn’t something any NBA team would look forward to right now, especially when you’re desperately fighting to hold onto the eighth and final playoff spot in the West. That’s what the Denver Nuggets had to deal with, and they looked helpless watching James Harden go coast-to-coast in the dying seconds last night to beat the Nuggets for the second time in 48 hours.
The back-to-back losses have helped the red-hot Trail Blazers get within half a game of the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. The Mavericks are also only 2.5 games back, and even the Pelicans have a slim chance, trailing by four games. Denver plays Portland and Dallas once more this year, and has three games remaining against New Orleans. On top of that, they’ll see Cleveland next, Houston once more, and OKC twice.
Portland’s next four opponents are Milwaukee, New York, Minnesota, and the Lakers, and they get to stay at home for three of the four. The rest of the Blazers’ schedule is pretty favorable, as well. Though Denver has been a lot of fun to watch, my money will be on the Nuggets missing out on the playoffs for a fourth consecutive season.
Editor-in-Chief; Sports Betting Expert
With nearly a decade working in the industry, Matt is a seasoned sports betting veteran. He got his start with SBD in 2016 and worked his way up the ladder to become the Editor-in-Chief. Along the way he has done everything from reviewing sportsbooks to creating proprietary sports betting tools.
