NBA Betting – Denver Nuggets at Dallas Mavericks

The Denver Nuggets finish off a season-long five-game road trip and look to stay a step ahead of the Dallas Mavericks when the two Western Conference heavyweights collide in Big D on Wednesday. The Nuggets split the first four games of their excursion and they are just three games above the breakeven point away from home. And they’ll have to contend with Luka Doncic if they want to head back to the Mile High City with a winning record on the trip. Despite the staggering numbers Doncic continues to put up, the Mavs are just 7-7 in their last 14 outings.  Live betting odds are available here

Denver Nuggets at Dallas Mavericks

Date and Time: Wednesday, January 8, 2020, 7:30 p.m. ET

Location: American Airlines Center, Dallas, TX

Opening NBA Odds: Dallas -3, O/U 217.5

Nuggets at Mavericks TV Coverage: ESPN

Odds Analysis

Dallas hasn’t been a good team at home this season splitting their last four in the AAC with an unsettling loss to Charlotte over the weekend. Overall they are just 11-8 SU and 7-11-1 ATS on their floor. The Nuggets are looking to close out their longest road trip of the season with back-to-back victories and a winning record after downing the Hawks on Sunday. They split the first four games and are 10-7 SU and 8-8-1 ATS. The teams met earlier this season in Denver with the Mavs winning outright, 109-106, as a 5.5-point dog. And they did it with little help from Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis, who combined to shoot just 27 percent from the floor with 22 points.

Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets got a wakeup call with a surprising loss to Washington over the weekend that had Michael Malone fuming. His troops got the message and handled another weak Eastern Conference team fairly easily, toppling the Hawks, 123-115, on Monday night. Denver settles into a nice three-game homestand after Wednesday’s contest, and the final game of a lengthy trip can be troublesome, so they better be prepared for one more roadie.

While most of the viewers will be watching Doncic, the Nuggets have stars of their own. And the biggest was on full display against the Hawks. Nikola Jokic scored a career-high 47 points connecting on 4 of 8 three-pointers and 16 of 25 from the field overall. He also added eight rebounds and five assists while not committing a turnover. Will Barton did his part with 28 points and Denver shot 51 percent. With all the talent they have, the Nuggets are a middle-of-the-pack offensive team scoring 109.2 points per game while shooting just over 46 percent from the floor.

Jokic is the triple-crown leader topping the team in scoring, rebounding and assists per game. But the Nuggets have a balanced attack with five players in double figures and a sixth, Jerami Grant, averaging 9.7 points per game. During a current seven-game stretch where they’ve gone just 4-3 SU, the defense has been a concern. Denver allowed all seven opponents to score at least 110 points with the over cashing in the last six.

Dallas Mavericks

As Luka goes so go the Mavericks. Doncic has reached celebrity status in the NBA and beyond by his amazing antics on the court. Teams know what’s coming and they still seem powerless to stop him. Despite the heroics of Doncic, the Mavs have been treading water over the last month going just 7-7 in their last 14 tilts. They moved 10 games over .500 at 23-13 by taking down the Bulls, 118-110, on Monday night behind a triple-double from Doncic.

Wednesday’s game will have significance in the West standings with Dallas only two games behind the Nuggets and owning a victory from earlier in the season. They got that win with Doncic going 3 of 12 from the floor and scoring 12 points, his lowest total in a game he didn’t get hurt in this season. And Luka has been on fire during the homestand scoring at least 31 points in all three games with a triple-double in the last two. He scored 38 points with 11 rebounds and 10 assists against Chicago.

The Mavs got a boost from the return of third leading scorer Tim Hardaway Jr., who missed a few games with an ankle injury. He went over his season average by dropping 15 on the Bulls. Norman Powell chipped in with 16 points on a perfect shooting night. Powell made all six field goals and was 4 of 4 from the stripe. The Mavs will be without Porzingis, who averages over 17 points, for a fifth straight game.

Bet Nuggets at Mavericks at BookMaker.eu

The Nuggets have depth and should be better offensively than they’ve shown. Jokic is a beast and Jamal Murray and Barton are talented scorers. They shut down Doncic in the last meeting but couldn’t take advantage. And this is a tough situation for them closing out a long road trip. However, I like Denver to close out strong with Jokic doing his best to counteract what Luka brings to the floor.

NBA Score Prediction: Nuggets 115, Mavericks 108

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- Phil Simon, Gambling911.com