The Denver Nuggets are about to enter another tough stretch of their schedule.
They’re headed to Los Angeles to wrap up a back-to-back against the LA Clippers. We’ll get more into that matchup in just a second, but first, here’s a look at the injury report.
LA:
Brandon Boston Jr. — OUT (Left Quadriceps Tendinopathy)
Mason Plumlee — OUT (Left MCL Sprain)
Denver:
Vlatko Čančar — OUT (Left Knee Surgery)
Aaron Gordon — OUT (Right Heel Strain)
Nikola Jokić — QUESTIONABLE (Low Back Pain)
Jamal Murray — OUT (Right Hamstring Strain)
Hunter Tyson — QUESTIONABLE (Illness)
Peyton Watson — PROBABLE (Illness)
Monday against the Clippers represents the first of five away contest in six games for the Nuggets. Denver is also playing five games in seven nights this upcoming week. It’s a grueling stretch.
They’re coming off a home win on Sunday against the San Antonio Spurs. The team tossed out a season-high 38 assists, and Nikola Jokić finished with a season-best 39 points to go with 11 rebounds and 9 assists.
The win was on the heels of a five-game road trip, a stretch of games the team went 1-4 on. The month of November has not been kind to Denver scheduling-wise, especially given that the team has been without Jamal Murray throughout the entire process.
Denver won 111-108 against LA in a thriller the last time these two teams met up. The Clippers have done a nice job finding themselves since beginning the season 3-7. They now sit 7-8 on the year and are winners of four of their last five games.
Keeping newcomer James Harden in the starting lineup and moving Russell Westbrook to the bench has been a major catalyst to their recent winning ways. LA bludgeoned the Dallas Mavericks, 107-88, on Saturday night with their brand-new starting lineup that featured the toolsy Terance Mann at shooting guard.
The Nuggets could be pretty shorthanded on Monday. Aaron Gordon is set to miss his second straight game with a heel strain, while Jokić is listed as questionable. The onus could fall on Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Reggie Jackson, and Michael Porter Jr. to shoulder the load should both players sit.
TUNE-IN: Monday 8:30 p.m. MT, NBA TV Altitude TV, and 950AM
