The Denver Nuggets will be back in action at Pepsi Center tonight as their division rival, the Utah Jazz, come to town. This is the first of four matchups between the two teams. The teams split the season series in 2017-18.
The Jazz come into tonight’s game with a 4-4 record having lost last night against the Memphis Grizzlies. The Jazz played without their star shooting guard, Donovan Mitchell, who sat out with hamstring soreness. Mitchell has been averaging 23.2 points so far this season.
The Nuggets are coming off of back-to-back road wins, beating Chicago and Cleveland on consecutive nights. The Nuggets are off to their best start since 1976 with a 7-1 record.
Here is what to watch for:
Boost from the bench: In each of Denver’s previous two games the bench has been a major factor. In Chicago, it was the play of Malik Beasley down the stretch, while in Cleveland it was the shooting of Juancho Hernangomez. Other members of the second unit performed at a high level as well, with Mason Plumlee, Monte Morris and Trey Lyles all providing valuable minutes. With the Nuggets playing their fourth game of the week, it will be critical to keep guys fresh.
Keeping the Jazz off of the three-point line: Utah is connecting on 37.7 percent of their three point attempts this season, the tenth best rate in the league. The Jazz have four players shooting better than 40% from deep. The Jazz shot 14-36 from three in their loss to Memphis last night.
Winning with defense: The Nuggets have been winning games with defense so far this season. The Jazz come in averaging 112.5 points per game, while having the league’s seventh best effective field goal percentage at 54.3 and the fifth best true shooting percentage at 58.3.
Tonight’s game will tip at 7 pm MT and will be broadcast on Altitude TV and the AltitudeNOW app. Fans can listen on Altitude Radio, 92.5 FM.