Denver Nuggets vs Portland Trail Blazers Prediction: The Nuggets in great touch, the Trail Blazers need boost

The NBA Regular Season is on and with the trade deadline just a few weeks away, we have to closely follow the news, because the rumors are going to pile up. There is a sense that many teams can end up playing their hand because there are some gaps to fill in the lineups or to bolster the long-term project during this all-important window. In this Regular Season game, the Denver Nuggets.

The Nuggets enter the game after defeating the Orlando Magic 119:116 as Aaron Gordon scooped up 25 points. The Nuggets have now won six in a row and are among the select few groups of teams that have hit the 30 wins mark. They are one of the top two teams in the West alongside the Grizzlies. What has changed from the last season is that Jokic has way more help and doesn’t have to be the leading scorer for the team to come to the top.

With his workload easing, he will be an even bigger threat down the line. Murray, Porter Jr, Gordon, Caldwell-Pope, and Bruce Brown have been playing at an amazing clip and the team defense has improved massively. With the way they are playing, the Nuggets are likely to make a deep Playoffs run, and even if there are multiple injuries, they have much better depth this season to cover for it.

Portland marches into the game after defeating the Dallas Mavericks 140:123 as Damian Lillard bagged 40 points. Lillard has now scored 30 or more in five games straight but Portland has not reaped the full benefits, winning just five of their last 15 games and overall having 22 losses and 21 wins. Portland has been unable to hit the long ball and the scoring balance has been disturbed massively as of late.

Jerami Grant and Anfernee Simons have cooled down a bit but the lack of offense can’t be pointed toward them anyway. The team lacks sustainable scoring at the wing and the middle whereas the bench hasn’t performed as per the expectations. The trouble with Portland has been that they have built leads but haven’t shown the ability to hang on to them. They need to correct the course soon because their style of play has been wearing the confidence down.

• Nuggets: OUT: Peyton Watson, Collin Gillespie, Jeff Green. QUESTIONABLE: Bones Hyland, Vlatko Cancar. PROBABLE: Jamal Murray;
• Trail Blazers: OUT: Justise Winslow. Game-Time Decision: Gary Payton II.

• Expected Leading Scorers: Damian Lillard(33+ Points), Nikola Jokic(22-26 Points);
• Expected Leading Rebounders: Nikola Jokic(10-12 Rebounds), Jusuf Nurkic(10-12 Rebounds);
• Expected Leading Playmakers: Nikola Jokic(9-12 Assists), Damian Lillard(8-11 Assists).

While it is clear that the Nuggets are the favorites and the chances for Portland look slim, I still see a big fight here. It is true that both teams have been on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of form and expectations. However, I see Lillard coming red-hot alongside Grant and Simons to turn the tables a bit. Although it may sound wild, I do see Portland upsetting the Nuggets here. I predict a scoreline of 122:118 in favor of Portland.