A tasty matchup is on the cards at the Ball Arena on Saturday evening as the Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Clippers face off in their second outing of the 2024-25 NBA season.
Both teams suffered defeats in their respective opening fixtures and now go in search of an immediate return to winning ways to help get back on track.
Match preview
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In a meeting of last season's top two seeds in the Western Conference who both finished with a 57-25 record, the Denver Nuggets were simply no match for the Oklahoma City Thunder as they fell to a 102-87 loss in Friday's highly anticipated curtain raiser.
Despite a first triple-double of the campaign from reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, Michael Malone's men were comprehensively beaten following a rough shooting night which saw them tally their fewest number of points in a regular-season clash since January.
The Nuggets had five players into double digits for points compared to the Thunder's four, although the 2023 NBA champions were led in scoring by Jokic's 16 points, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Chet Holmgren racked up 28 and 25 respectively for the Thunder.
In isolation, an opening-day defeat against the calibre of opponents faced last time out should not raise any alarm bells, but that was in keeping with a rough pre-season journey for the Nuggets en route to a 1-4 record over five warm-up outings.
With yet another heavyweight encounter to come for the Nuggets this weekend, they will need to put their house in order to avoid coming away empty-handed from both of their first two outings of the new campaign.
Since winning the first two meetings between the teams last season, the Nuggets have been beaten in the subsequent three editions of this fixture—most recently an 88-78 defeat in July's Summer League clash at the Cox Pavilion.
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The Los Angeles Clippers served up the first overtime action of the new season in their thrilling opening encounter against the Phoenix Suns at the Intuit Dome on Thursday, which ended in a 116-113 defeat.
Tyronn Lue's men were less than 30 seconds away from claiming a hard-fought victory in their first outing on their new court before Kevin Durant tied the game with a clutch three-pointer to send the clash to an additional five minutes.
Having driven the Clippers' offence for large spells of the contest, James Harden cut a peripheral figure in overtime where he managed just one of his 29 points, and it was no surprise his side would go on to lose by three points.
New arrivals Derrick Jones and Kevin Porter Jr had contrasting debuts, as the former posted 12 points on 5-6 shooting from the field, while the latter mustered only two points, having knocked down just one of his eight shots and none from four attempts beyond the arc.
In the first of two consecutive mouth-watering matches on the road, the Clippers will be looking to get themselves up and running on Saturday before heading to the Chase Center for Tuesday's duel with the Golden State Warriors.
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Team News
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Los Angeles Clippers' Kawhi Leonard is still unavailable for selection with a knee problem, and the superstar remains without a definite timetable for his return to action.
Mo Bamba also misses out through a knee injury, while veteran PJ Tucker is out of contention as talks over his long-term future continue with a trade in view.
Two assists away from a triple double last time out, James Harden will need to put up another impressive performance for his side, who are short-handed in offence.
Draft pick DaRon Holmes II is the only guaranteed absentee for the Denver Nuggets having torn his right Achilles tendon in Summer League action against the Clippers.
Russell Westbrook will be fired up for Saturday's contest as he prepares to take on his former side, whom he left during the off-season to join his current employers.
Denver Nuggets possible starting five:
Murray, Braun; Porter Jr., Gordon; Jokic
Los Angeles Clippers possible starting five:
Harden, Powell; Mann, Jones Jr.; Zubac
We say: Nuggets to win by 6+ points
The Nuggets were largely underwhelming against the Thunder and know they cannot afford a repeat performance against a team of the Clippers' quality.
We are expecting the home side to up the ante here and come away with a victory, inflicting a second straight defeat on the visitors.
Adepoju Marvellous
