Game Time: 8:0 PM ET, Sunday, January 16th, 2022 

Venue: Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado

Where to Watch:  NBA League Pass

Opening NBA Odds at USA Sportsbooks

DraftKings:  Spread: NL

BetMGM:  Spread:  NL

VegasInsider:  Spread:  

WynnBet: Spread: 

Utah Jazz: 28-14, 4th place Western Conference

Denver Nuggets: 21-19, 6th place Western Conference 

A Western Conference matchup of quality multi-year playoff teams.  For years now both these teams have been stuck in the same spot.  They are both winning teams led by a top tier all-star.  They both make the playoffs.  They both, no matter what they try, ever make the NBA Finals. Utah’s Donovan Mitchell is and has been one of the best guards in the NBA… he has a thick streak of Kobe Bryant in his game, he puts this team on his back and scores with a killer instinct. Denver’s Nikola Jokic is a “does everything” player.  He fills a stat sheet in every category; points, assists, and rebounds… and he has an MVP trophy to prove it.  If Donovan Mitchell and Nikola Jokic were teammates that team would win multiple titles.

The Utah Jazz are on the wrong end of a streak… They have lost their last 4 games in a row.  Dropping a game to the Cleveland Cavaliers is forgivable… Cleveland is good this year and they will surprise lots of good teams this season…. But losing to the Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, and Toronto Raptors all in a row means something is definitely wrong.  The team put Center Rudy Gobert on the injured list for a game as he has been suffering from shoulder inflammation… the team has been missing key back-up SF Rudy Gay to Covid, and will be without backup Center Hasaan Whiteside for a few games… still something else is unbalanced and brewing… you can’t explain away losses to the Pacers and Pistons even if some key players miss games.  The losing streak has caused the Jazz to go 5-5 over their last ten games. They are also only 3-6-1 ATS during that run as well.  It feels like this team should be scouring the league for a big move at the trade deadline.  The natural move would be Jordan Clarkson, Hasaan Whiteside, and a pick for someone/anyone who can take some of the weight off of Donovan Mitchell.  The Jazz have to be careful with any move they make because they won’t want to upset the chemistry of the #1 FG% in the league… still the #1 FG% team in the league should be winning more games.

The Denver Nuggets have won three of their last 4 games (with a Lakers game still to play Saturday night)... they are 6-4 over their last 10 games, but only 4-6 ATS during that time. In their last game they shelled the Portland Trail Blazers for a 140-108 win and to watch that you would think this team was pure dynamite on offense… except the night before they lost to the Los Angeles Clippers 87-85.  In the Clippers game they were stagnant and tired and they allowed to Clippers to come back from a big deficit in the second half.  They got beaten by a sudden outburst from Reggie Jackson, which shouldn’t have happened.  Of course the problem with the Nuggets right now is they are missing their 2nd and 3rd best players SG Jamal Murray and PF Michael Porter Jr… No matter what Nikola Jokic does he can’t help the team overcome these glaring absences that not only affect the scoring column but wreak havoc on the team’s depth.

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The Jazz are 28-14 on the season, but 19-22-1 ATS.  They have logged 22 Overs, 19 Unders, and 1 Push.  They are a dominant 14-6 in road games.

The Nuggets are 21-19 on the season, but 17-23 ATS.  They have notched 20 Overs and 20 Unders.  They are 10-7 in home games.

The Jazz are 1st in scoring with 115.1 points per game, 4th in rebounds with 46.4 per, and 27th in AST/TO ratio with 1.5.  They are 1st in FG%, 6th in 3PT%, and 15th in FT%.  The defense is top third in the league at 12th while allowing 107.6 points.

The Nuggets are 23rd in scoring with 106.4 points per game, 26th in rebounds with 43.3 per, and 7th in AST/TO ratio with 1.9.  Shooting is 7th in FG%, 20th in 3PT%, and 21st in FT%

Our prediction for Sunday, January 16th is….  Jazz 114 - Nuggets 101

The Nuggets are still suffering from missing their key guys.  It is starting to set in that they have to play great, almost mistake-free to get wins.  The pressure feels to be mounting in Denver.  Rudy Gobert is listed as Probable for the Jazz which means he will most likely play with Whiteside sitting out.

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(will be updated after Denver’s game against the Lakers Saturday night)

Jazz: C Rudy Gobert (shoulder) Prob ** SF Rudy Gay (condition) Quest ** C Hasaan Whiteside (covid) Out ** C Norvell Pelle (covid) Out

Nuggets: SG Will Barton (neck) Probable ** PF Jeff Green (personal) Quest ** SG Jamal Murray (knee) Out ** PF Michael Porter Jr (back) Out ** 

Jazz: SF Joe Ingles, SF Bojan Bogdanovic, C Royce O’Neale, PG Mike Conley, SG Donovan Mitchell

Nuggets: PF Zeke Nnaji, SF Aaron Gordon, C Nikola Jokic, SG Will Barton , PG Monte Morris

Jazz

Points: Donovan Mitchell 25.7

Assists: Mike Conley 5.3

Rebounds: Rudy Gobert 15.1

Steals: Donovan Mitchell 1.6

Blocks: Rudy Gobert 2.3

Nuggets

Points: Nikola Jokiic 25.5

Assists: Nikola Jokic 7.0

Rebounds: Nikola Jokic 14

Steals: Nikola Jokic 1.3

Blocks: Nikola Jokic 0.8

Coaches

Jazz: Quin Snyder

Nuggets: Michael Malone