The latest round of regular-season matches in the 2024-25 NBA campaign sees Western Conference heavyweights Los Angeles Clippers and Denver Nuggets face off at the Intuit Dome on Monday.
The home side were narrowly defeated in their last outing against the Minnesota Timberwolves, while the visitors go in search of consecutive wins for the first time in eight matches.
Match preview
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Off the back of their second-largest away triumph of the season against the Washington Wizards, the Clippers rounded off their road stretch with a 93-92 defeat to the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center on Saturday.
A tight first half saw Tyronn Lue's men go into the interval trailing by six points, and despite taking a slender lead with just under four minutes left to play, they fell to a one-point loss following Anthony Edwards's six-point salvo in the final stages of the contest.
Having split their four-game road trip into two wins and two defeats apiece, the Clippers have now dropped to 12-9 for the season and currently sit ninth in the West despite having played the most games in the entire conference.
A chance to return to winning ways now lies in wait against a Denver Nuggets side who have been beaten in each of the most recent four editions of this fixture, including October's meeting where the Clippers rallied in the final quarter to take a 109-104 victory.
In the first of four straight matches in front of their fans, Monday's hosts now target an eighth consecutive home win before entertaining the Portland Trailblazers, the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Houston Rockets over the next one week.
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Seeking to bounce back from their heaviest defeat of the campaign so far against the New York Knicks two days prior, the Denver Nuggets claimed a resounding 122-103 victory over the Utah Jazz at the Delta Center on Thursday.
Unsurprisingly, reigning MVP Nikola Jokic was the driving force for Michael Malone's men once again as he tallied 30 points on 13-19 field-goal shooting to go along with 10 rebounds and seven assists in his 34 minutes on the court.
Consequently, the Nuggets have become the latest team in the Western Conference to reach double digits for victories this term despite having played only 17 matches, four fewer than their next opponents.
Recording a whopping 30 dimes last time out, the Denver Nuggets exhibited the kind of excellent ball movement that has seen them rack up the third-most assists per game of any team (29.9) in the NBA so far.
With mouth-watering clashes against the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers on the horizon, Monday's visitors will be keen to make a winning start to their daunting run of matches ahead of the festive period.
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Team News
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Aaron Gordon is still unavailable for the Nuggets with a calf problem and is joined on the sidelines by DaRon Holmes II, who continues to nurse an Achilles tendon injury.
Vlatko Cancar also misses out for the visitors with a sprained left knee, while the involvement of Peyton Watson continues to hang in the balance due to a right adductor strain.
Kawhi Leonard is out of Monday's game with a knee problem, although the forward is edging closer to a return to action having been cleared to resume shooting work.
Kevin Porter Jr (ankle) and Kobe Brown (back) are guaranteed absentees, but Norman Powell retains a small chance of recovering in time to suit up for this one.
James Harden posted 23 points and 16 assists to lead his side to victory in the last meeting between Monday's opponents, and the guard will be looking to deliver the goods once again.
Los Angeles Clippers possible starting five:
Harden, Dunn; Coffey, Jones Jr.; Zubac
Denver Nuggets possible starting five:
Murray, Braun; Strawther, Porter Jr.; Jokic
We say: Nuggets to win by 5+ points
Both teams have significant injury concerns heading into this one, but there is still plenty of quality on show to serve up an entertaining affair.
That said, we are tipping the away side to come out on top at the sound of the final buzzer in Los Angeles.
