The Denver Nuggets and New Orleans Pelicans wrap up Sunday’s three-game NBA slate.
The pregame narrative: Denver is a 9.5-point favourite but I’ll simply back it to win tonight. Prop bets on Nikola Jokic and Dejounte Murray round out this +310 wager.
Check out my Nuggets vs. Pelicans same-game parlay predictions for Dec. 22.
Nuggets vs. Pelicans predictions
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Parlay: Nuggets moneyline + Jokic over 1.5 threes + Murray over 7.5 assists (+310)
Nuggets moneyline (-420): Injuries have derailed the Pelicans’ season.
Nearly everyone in the team’s starting five has missed time and their two leading scorers from last season — Zion Williamson and Brandon Ingram — are out tonight.
New Orleans is a conference-worst 5-24 and has lost 15 of its past 16 games.
One of its five wins came against Denver back in November but I can’t see that happening again tonight. Jokic is playing at an MVP pace and Jamal Murray is starting to find his shooting stroke.
The Nuggets have won three of their last four while averaging 128.8 points per game — I expect them to keep their foot on the gas.
SGP legs
Jokic over 1.5 threes (-143): Just when you thought Jokic couldn’t get any better, he did.
The three-time MVP is frontrunning his way to another trophy averaging a career-best 31.3 points per game. That’s been thanks to shooting an insane 50.0% from beyond the arc.
- Jokic has made 2+ threes in 16/22 games this year.
- He’s 11-2 against this line in his last 13 games.
The Pelicans have the 27th-ranked 3-point defence (37.3%) and give up the sixth-most 3s per game (14.3).
Jokic was sidelined when Denver lost to New Orleans earlier this season but I expect him to be active from beyond the arc tonight.
Murray over 7.5 assists (-108): Murray was the Pelicans’ big off-season acquisition and he’s starting to heat up after missing the first two months of the season with an injury.
The former Atlanta Hawk is averaging 7.3 assists in December and has cleared this line in four of his last five games.
His 12.3 potential assists per game rank 16th in the NBA, too.
Denver hasn’t been as defensively stout as in recent years and is giving up the third-most assists per game to opposing PGs (10.1), according to Fantasy Pros.
Picks made at 11:53 a.m. ET 12/22/2024.
Avery joined NorthStar Gaming as an intern in 2022 before stepping into a full-time role soon after. He loves betting on and analyzing golf — mainly because it’s easier than actually playing — but is a fan of all sports, from the NFL to the UFC.