Defense meets offense when the Miami Heat (32-25, 19-9 Home) welcome the Denver Nuggets (39-18, 13-14 Away) Monday. Denver beat the Charlotte Hornets 119-105 at Spectrum Center on Saturday. With 30 points, 16 rebounds, and 10 assists, Nikola Jokic led the way.
The Nuggets are 3.5 games ahead of the Memphis Grizzlies atop the Western Conference, currently sitting in first. Miami won their third in a row on Saturday at Amway Center, beating the Orlando Magic 107-103 in overtime.
Tyler Herro led the team in scoring with 23 points. With 22 points, seven rebounds, and six assists, Jimmy Butler also produced a strong performance. The Heat are the sixth seed in the Eastern Conference.
It’s the final meeting of the season between the teams. Denver will be looking for a season sweep against Miami after taking the only prior matchup 124-119 at Ball Arena in December 2022, their eighth straight head-to-head victory. Herro topped all players in scoring with 26 points and 10 rebounds in defeat.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 20 points for the Nuggets, while Jokic had a triple double with 19 points, 12 rebounds, and 12 assists. Jokic is averaging 24.9 points per game to lead the Nuggets in scoring this season. Jokic also is contributing 11.4 rebounds and 10.1 assists per game, placing him sixth and second in the league, respectively.
Butler (21.9 ppg), Bam Adebayo (21.6), and Herro (20.6) have supplied much of the Heat’s offense. Adebayo also has collected 10.1 rebounds per game. Meanwhile, Kyle Lowry has distributed 5.3 assists per game.
The Nuggets rank as the NBA’s best team in offensive efficiency, while the Heat are third in defensive efficiency. The teams have split their last 10 meetings at FTX Arena (5-5). Miami is looking for a ninth straight home win this season.
In the last 10 games, Denver is 6-4 with an average margin of +3.9 (116.8-112.9). Miami has a 7-3 record over the last 10, scoring 106.4 points per game on average while allowing 105.3 (+1.1 margin).
NUGGETS HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Jamal Murray: 53.0 | 30.2 | +22.8
Thomas Bryant: 0.0 | 19.1 | -19.1
Points per game:
Jamal Murray: 41.0 | 20.2 | +20.8
Thomas Bryant: 0.0 | 11.8 | -11.8
Rebounds per game:
Nikola Jokic: 14.5 | 11.4 | +3.1
Thomas Bryant: 0.0 | 6.6 | -6.6
HEAT HOT/COLD
(Last Five | Season Average | Differential)
Points + Rebounds + Assists:
Kyle Lowry: 6.0 | 21.6 | -15.6
Points per game:
Kyle Lowry: 3.0 | 12.0 | -9.0
Assists per game:
Kyle Lowry: 2.0 | 5.3 | -3.3
SportsTips’ NBA Pick:
Denver Nuggets (-115)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
