Houston Rockets vs Denver Nuggets: Prediction and betting tips | Dec. 8, 2023

The Houston Rockets vs Denver Nuggets game is on Friday as part of the nine-game slate of the NBA. This is the fourth time the teams will meet this season. The Rockets won twice, while the Nuggets prevailed in their most recent encounter.

Defending champions Denver Nuggets are third in the Western Conference with a 14-8 record. Having lost to the Sacramento Kings and LA Clippers, the Nuggets will look to return to winning ways.

Meanwhile, the Houston Rockets have an even 9-9 record. After losing three straight games, the Rockets stopped the bleeding with a nine-point win over the OKC Thunder.

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Houston Rockets vs Denver Nuggets: Preview, betting tips, and prediction

The Houston Rockets vs Denver Nuggets matchup will be held at the Ball Arena located in the high altitude location of Colorado.

The game tips off at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time, and the live television broadcast is handled by Altitude and Space City Home Network. Both feeds can be seen by subscribing to the NBA League Pass.

Moneyline: Rockets (+300) vs Nuggets (-380)

Spread: Rockets +8.5 (-110) vs -8.5 Nuggets (-110)

Total (O/U): Rockets (u220.0) vs Nuggets (o220.0)

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Houston Rockets vs Denver Nuggets: Preview

The Denver Nuggets have only two players on their injury report. Jamal Murray is marked as 'probable' and will be a game-time decision to play. Vlatko Cancar is also on the list but has no timeline to return from a knee injury.

Meanwhile, Jeff Green is 'probable' to play due to personal reasons. Jock Landale and Victor Oladipo are listed as out and unavailable to play against the Nuggets.

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Houston Rockets vs Denver Nuggets: Predicted lineups

The Houston Rockets have a healthy starting lineup and are expected to go with their usual starting five. Jalen Green and Fred VanVleet form the starting backcourt while Alperen Sengun, Dillon Brooks and Jabari Smith Jr. round up the starting five.

Jamal Murray played in the Nuggets' recent game, but if he sits out, Reggie Jackson should take his place and join Kentavious Caldwell-Pope as the starting guard. Aaron Gordon, Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. form a tall frontcourt.

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Houston Rockets vs Denver Nuggets: Betting tips

Nikola Jokic has an NBA prop of 29.5 points, but he did not hit that in his last game. With Jamal Murray playing, the fewer chances that he would go over, as the scoring load would be spread out to the starting point guard.

Meanwhile, one of their prime scorers, Jalen Green is only given 18 points on the NBA prop. Even with his scoring talent, he has struggled to hit that mark and will likely not go over with the defensive roster of the Nuggets in front of him.

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Houston Rockets vs Denver Nuggets: Prediction

There is a certain advantage by the Nuggets getting used to playing in a high altitude location and expecting the total to go under vs the Houston Rockets. The spread is too wide, so expect the Rockets to pull the game closer. With that, the spread of 8.5 points could be difficult to cover.