Mavericks vs. Nuggets Odds
| Mavericks Odds | +4.5 |
| Nuggets Odds | -4.5 |
| Over/Under | 234 (-110/-110) |
| Time | 9 p.m. ET |
| TV | NBA League Pass |
| Odds via FanDuel. Get up-to-the-minute NBA odds here. | |
Wednesday evening features a Western Conference clash between the Denver Nuggets and Dallas Mavericks. This is the last game before the All-Star Break for both teams as the Mavericks lead this series 2-1 this season.
There are a few questionable players on both sides of this matchup, but the main attractions will be suiting up making this a must-watch environment. Whenever Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic share the floor it's always fireworks.
The Nuggets are seven-point home favorites tonight in their last meeting of the regular season. Pretty high spread considering Kyrie Irving is now playing on the Mavericks.
Can the back-to-back MVP continue his historic season leading the Nuggets to another win or will the new dynamic duo finally get on the board with their first win while playing together? Let's find the betting edge in Mavericks vs Nuggets.
Dallas Mavericks
After a ferocious comeback scoring 39 points in the fourth quarter, the Mavericks fell short to the Timberwolves Monday Night as they failed to get a shot attempt in the last possession. Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving since playing alongside each other are 0-2 so far losing by a combined six points.
Despite adding another ball-handler, Doncic has posted a 35.2% usage rate in the last two games. He ranks second overall in usage rate and is tied for the league-lead in scoring averaging a career-high 33.2 points per game, while shooting 50.5% from the field. He won't be slowing down anytime soon.
Irving has played two games on the Mavericks with Doncic and two without. There was no glaring difference between the two games other than the fact that Irving has been shooting the lights out. Irving is shooting 53.3% from the field, 42.9% from downtown, and has made all 18 of his free-throw attempts.
Outside of the dynamic guard duo, the Mavericks may be throwing together a makeshift lineup as Christian Wood, Tim Hardaway Jr. and Reggie Bullock are all questionable to play tonight. Even though it may be tough to bet on the Mavericks with those question marks, the Nuggets may have bigger injuries.
The Mavericks are 2-1 against the Nuggets this season winning their last game in Denver 116-115, despite Doncic shooting 5 of 17 from the field. Even if the Mavericks don't win this game, covering the seven-point spread shouldn't be that difficult with two microwave scorers. Expect Doncic and Irving to find a way to keep this game competitive, and maybe even pull off the big upset.
Denver Nuggets
The Nuggets are one of the hottest teams in the league winning 26 of their last 34 games. Led by the back-to-back MVP Nikola Jokic, the Nuggets hold a five-game lead in the Western Conference coming into tonight. They are on cruise control as they look to go into the NBA All-Star Break on a high note.
They may still be disrespected in the NBA Championship Odds, but Jokic currently leads all players as the favorite to host another MVP trophy. Jokic is averaging a triple-double for the first time in his career with 24.9 points, 11.4 rebounds, and 10.1 assists per game. The Nuggets are 20-0 when Jokic records a triple-double this season, which for him comes very frequently.
Jamal Murray has missed five-straight games with a knee injury while Aaron Gordon has missed back-to-back games with his own injury. It wouldn't be surprising if both sat this one out to get a full reset before returning after the All-Star Break. The Nuggets need both players healthy in the suddenly loaded Western Conference. It will likely be the Jokic-show once again in this meeting.
The Mavericks rank 22nd in Defensive Rating (115.1), entering tonight's game and have gotten progressively worse with Dorian Finney-Smith departing due to acquiring Kyrie Irving. Jokic will feast in this matchup especially if Christian Wood is unable to play, but covering this large spread by himself is a tall task.
Mavericks-Nuggets Pick
There are a lot of trends working against the Mavericks in this matchup against the Nuggets. They have the worst record (21-36-2) against the spread in the league. Their 12-18 record on the road isn't good while the Nuggets have won 20 of their last 21 at home and have a league-best 26-4 home record.
Despite all of that, a team with Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving should not be dogs by this many points. It seems unlikely that Jamal Murray and Aaron Gordon suit up, so I would take this line before that news surfaces.
Take the Mavericks to cover the spread and throw a sprinkle on their moneyline at +240 on DraftKings Sportsbook. I grabbed this at +7 but would take the Mavericks down to +5 in this spot.
Pick: Mavericks +5.5 |
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