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The NBA season continues with games on Wednesday. The Utah Jazz will hit the road and take on the Denver Nuggets. It's time to continue our NBA odds series and make a Jazz-Nuggets prediction and pick.
These two teams have been having different seasons. The Utah Jazz have been impressive with a record of 27-10 and are coming off a win. While the Denver Nuggets have only been okay with a record of 18-17 and are coming off a disappointing loss. This should be a fun match between two competitive teams.
Here are the odds for the Jazz-Nuggets Wednesday night NBA matchup, courtesy of FanDuel.
NBA Odds: Jazz-Nuggets Odds
Utah Jazz: -3 (-110)
Denver Nuggets: +3 (-110)
Over: 223.5 (-110)
Under: 223.5 (-110)
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Why The Jazz Could Cover The Spread
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The Utah Jazz have been one of the most impressive teams in the NBA. Through their first 37 games, they have managed to win 27 and lose only 10. The Jazz are coming off a solid 11 point victory over the New Orleans Pelicans. Utah will face a tougher opponent in Denver, however, they should be able to rise to the occasion. The Jazz have shown that they can compete with the best teams in the league and will look to continue to do so on Wednesday. While injuries and COVID will certainly play a factor, Utah is showing resiliency that should inspire optimism in fans.
Utah had the edge in nearly every statistic in their win over the Pelicans. There weren’t many stark contrasts that led to the Jazz’s win, rather it was just a solid all-around performance from Utah. What was particularly impressive was their efficiency from beyond the arc. The Jazz shot 39 threes and made 19 of them. When Utah is hitting three-pointers at nearly 50% their opponents should be afraid. If the Jazz can continue to just play solid all-around basketball and shoot the ball efficiently, then they should have no problem taking care of business on the road.
While COVID is a big concern across the league, injuries have been even more detrimental to Utah. The Jazz currently have seven players questionable for Wednesday’s match. Headlining the affected players are Donovan Mitchell and Rudy Gobert. If Mitchell and Gobert are both out for this game then that would drastically impact the outcome. Utah fans should be crossing their fingers, hoping that at least one of the two impacted players is on the court on Wednesday.
Why The Nuggets Could Cover The Spread
The Denver Nuggets have been a solid all-around team. Through their first 35 games, they have managed to squeak out a winning record with 18 wins and 17 losses. They were on a bit of a heater having won the three games before last. Denver is coming off a disappointing 14 point loss to the Dallas Mavericks. That was a very winnable game for Denver, so they will be looking to make up for it on Wednesday. Like every team, the Nuggets are dealing with COVID and injuries, however, Denver has shown that they can still battle. If they can make up for the last game then they could win this one.
Denver actually had the edge in a lot of statistics in their loss to Dallas. The Nuggets had around the same shooting numbers as the Mavs and actually outrebounded Dallas by 19. In spite of this, Denver still lost by 14 to Dallas. Where issues started to arise was in ball security and turnovers. The Nuggets had an astonishing 25 turnovers, and Dallas only had 11. This 14 possession difference is the reason that the Nuggets lost the game. While this may have been an outlier, it is not a good sign to see so many turnovers. Denver needs to take better care of the ball if they want to win a tough game on Wednesday.
The Nuggets have been plagued with injuries and COVID. Denver has 6 players out with injuries and another 2 players in the league’s health and safety protocols. On top of that, Austin Rivers has just been listed as questionable for the game. These unavailable players are the biggest obstacle to Denver's success. They have shown resiliency this season and have somehow managed to maintain some competitiveness, however, it is still extremely tough. The Nuggets have been battling with injuries all season, but for any team, it is still crippling to be without so many roster members.
Final Jazz-Nuggets Prediction & Pick
This is a very tough decision. If both teams were guaranteed to be completely healthy then the Jazz would stand out as the obvious pick. However, that is never the case, especially given COVID. If both Mitchell and Gobert are upgraded to active for Wednesday's contest then Utah is an easy pick here. But, given the circumstances, I think that the over-under should be looked at. Utah is averaging 116 points per game while Denver is only averaging 105. With injuries in play, the under seems like the correct bet here. Pick the under and hope that at least a chunk of players from both teams don't get upgraded to active.
FINAL JAZZ-NUGGETS PICK: Under 223.5 (-110)
FINAL JAZZ-NUGGETS SCORE PREDICTION: Jazz 107 – Nuggets 103
