Western Conference rivals collide at altitude as the Denver Nuggets host the Sacramento Kings at Ball Arena on Monday night.
The Nuggets (3-2) bookended a three-game win streak with a pair of losses, most recently dropping a nail-biting NBA Cup opener to the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night. The Kings (2-4), meanwhile, aim to build on the momentum from Saturday’s impressive win over the Milwaukee Bucks.
Tipoff is set for 9:00 p.m. ET. The Nuggets enter as a commanding 11.5-point home favorite on DraftKings Sportsbook, while the Kings are listed as +440 underdogs. The game’s total is set at 224.5 points.
Kings vs. Nuggets Preview
There’s plenty to be excited about if you’re a Denver Nuggets fan. The fine-tuned roster, which swapped Michael Porter Jr. for former Nets standout Cam Johnson, has excelled on both ends of the floor, combining a top-four defensive rating with the NBA’s third-best offense. Denver has scored 124 points per game on 51.8% shooting — the third most efficient mark in the league. Even when the Nuggets stumble, they rarely compound mistakes, shutting down fastbreaks and limiting second-chance points.
Jamal Murray leads the Nuggets with 26 points per game, while perennial MVP candidate Nikola Jokic is averaging a 20-point triple-double with an NBA-leading 14.4 rebounds and 10.8 assists a night. Aaron Gordon has also been a key contributor, adding 19.8 points per game and riding the momentum from a 50-point explosion in the season opener.
Sacramento’s season hasn’t started quite as brightly. The Kings feature a middling offense and the NBA’s fourth-worst defense, leaving them with a disheartening 23rd-ranked net rating. They’re also the worst rebounding team in the league — woof.
Still, the Kings have shown flashes of potential early in the season. Sacramento ranks top three in both limiting turnovers (13.2 per game) and generating steals (10.3), while committing fewer fouls than all but the Los Angeles Clippers — a promising sign against the Nuggets, who lead the league in free-throw percentage at a scorching 87.3%.
Leading the charge for Sacramento is Zach LaVine, acquired from the Chicago Bulls at last year’s trade deadline. The two-time All-Star guard is averaging 29.5 points per game and has already made franchise history as the first Kings player to score 30+ points in five of the team’s first six games in the Sacramento era.
LaVine poured in 31 points in the team’s latest win over a strong Milwaukee Bucks squad, while Domantas Sabonis, DeMar DeRozan, and Dennis Schroder each added at least 24.
Kings vs. Nuggets Pick, Best Bet
The Nuggets have the edge on both ends of the floor, and it wouldn’t be surprising if they came away with their fourth win of the season. Still, Sacramento has been competitive in nearly every contest, with three of the Kings’ four losses coming by seven points or fewer. The only outlier was a 13-point defeat to the Chicago Bulls, who opened the year 5-0 before finally getting stopped by the New York Knicks on Sunday.
Count on the Kings to keep this one close. Riding the momentum from that impressive showing against Milwaukee, who’s to say they can’t surprise again?
