NBA 2022/23, on Thursday, 15.12.2022
In a few days, the final of the World Cup will kick off in faraway Qatar. Until then, however, I’m focusing my attention almost exclusively on good NFL and NBA tips with which I want to clean up with the sports betting providers.
The basketball match between the Denver Nuggets and the Washington Wizards is at the top of my list on today’s matchday. The resulting Nuggets Wizards prediction goes into the exact reasons why Nikola Jokic should put in another gala performance…
The Nuggets officials have every reason to pat themselves on the back these days. The fact that Denver is among the top 3 in the Western Conference just before Christmas is a bit of a surprise for the 2022/23 NBA season.
The upcoming opponent should also be beatable. That’s why I have a Nuggets Wizard tip in mind, which even foresees a clear handicap victory for the home side. After all, Washington is currently in free fall.
The Capital Bullets have won only one of their last ten NBA games. Another play-off appearance like last year should no longer be a realistic scenario to take seriously this year…
Delon Wright’s exit after the fourth game of the season has rattled the Wizards virtually from the start. On top of that, the defensive work is showing more and more deficiencies with each game.
But if Washington has already lost just about every one of its last ten games, it is natural to assume that the upcoming opponent will also have an easy game.
The Capital Bullets have played five of those games against teams that are among the worst ten in the NBA in purely offensive terms. Compared to that, the Nuggets have a lot more going for them in terms of creating traffic under the Capitals’ basket.
On paper, the Nuggets are in a good position to get a high-scoring result against Washington. After all, their own offence is on the upswing, while the defence leaves something to be desired.
Denver, for example, has shown an unbroken shooting rate of over 50% per appearance for seven games. Incidentally, this – together with the Nets’ run in November – is the longest such streak in the league this season.
But the defence continues to cause head coach Michael Malone slight problems. Aside from being among the NBA’s worst five, it often looks pale when facing quick and capable players.
Home fans can breathe a sigh of relief, though, because Washington doesn’t currently have an offensive artist in its ranks who could really embarrass Jokic or Gordon on the board.
Bradley Beal would be one such candidate who could provide danger, but perhaps the Capital Bullets’ only real superstar has been suffering from a thigh injury for almost a week.
Not expecting Beal to get the green light from the medical department tonight, I’m assuming a similar fixture to the March 17, 2022 game, which sets an interesting precedent…
The Wizards have already lost a game against the Nuggets without Beal in an extremely clear manner – 109:127 was the final score for the completely overmatched Capital Bullets.
By the way, those who like to place bets on players with verified providers such as Bet365 should know that, in addition to my actual Wizards Nuggets tip, I intend to place another bet on the individual performance of Nikola Jokic.
Because already in the last meeting with Washington, the Serb could do whatever he wanted with 29 points and 13 rebounds. The visitors simply don’t have a player with the calibre to stop Jokic.
A pure win bet on the home side without a handicap would therefore hardly be worthwhile in view of the current situation on the markets. The German bookmakers seem to be prepared for a defeat of the Capitals.
A win by the Nuggets therefore only promises an almost microscopic payout of 1.2 times the bet, while a surprise win by the Wizards would amount to an approximate fivefold increase in the bet.
Conclusion: The Wizards are currently in trouble, which the home side will be only too happy to exploit.
They are missing Delon Wright and Bradley Beal, and while Rui Hachimura could return, that alone is unlikely to be enough to keep Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets’ offence at bay.
The Capital Bullets have already looked bad against much weaker teams in the past week, so it should be comparatively easy for Denver to get points….
My Nuggets Wizards tip: Denver wins with a handicap of -9.5.
