Celtics vs Nuggets NBA Sports Betting Odds, Lines & 2025 Expert Analysis in Week 12

The favorite to win the NBA’s Eastern Conference is Boston and the favorite to win the West is Denver, and the two teams meet on Thursday night in a potential NBA Finals preview from the Mile High City. The Nuggets are rare underdogs on the NBA odds.

2024 NBA Expert Analysis Boston vs Denver | MyBookie Sportsbook NBA Week 19

How to Bet Celtics at Nuggets NBA Odds & TV Info

When: Thursday, 10 PM ET
Where: Ball Arena
TV: TNT
Stream: TNT App
Radio: Tunein.com
NBA Odds: Celtics -1.5 (220.5)

Celtics vs Nuggets First Meeting

On Jan. 19, the Nuggets were 102-100 winners in Boston, which had been 20-0 this season at TD Garden. Jamal Murray scored 35 points, and Nikola Jokic finished with 34 points, 12 rebounds and nine assists. Jayson Tatum had a chance to tie it in the closing seconds, but he missed a one-legged fadeaway off the rim that was contested by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. He finished with 22 points and eight rebounds. Derrick White had 24 points and Kristaps Porzingis added 21. There were 13 lead changes and eight ties. At home, Denver leads the all-time series 29-20.

Why Bet on Boston Celtics?

The Celtics might have been looking ahead to this game on Tuesday when they somehow blew a 22-point fourth-quarter lead at short-handed Cleveland and lost 105-104 to see their 11-game winning streak end. Cavs reserve Dean Wade made five 3-pointers and scored 20 points in the fourth quarter. It was the biggest fourth-quarter comeback in franchise history and Cleveland did it without injured All-Star Donovan Mitchell, who was out with a knee injury. Good young forward Evan Mobley left in the third quarter injured.

Jayson Tatum notched a game-high 26 points to go with 13 rebounds. With the Celtics trailing by one point, Tatum was initially granted two free-throw attempts after being fouled by Darius Garland with 0.1 seconds left. But the Cavaliers successfully challenged the call, which resulted in a game-ending tip-off at half-court.

“I called one [a timeout] at 4.6 [seconds], but they didn’t see it,” Coach Joe Mazzulla said. As for holding for the last shot and taking their time on the final possession while being down one point, Mazzulla acknowledged the mistake, saying they need to be faster moving forward.

“We’ve got to go faster there,” Mazzulla added. “I thought [Derrick] White got the matchup we wanted into it, we’ve just got to play a little but faster. Down one in that situation, you try to get a couple more possessions, and we just have to get into it faster, go faster, and try to extend the game.”

The MVP candidate Tatum scored at least 20 points for the fourth straight game and the 17th time in the last 18, a stretch in which Tatum has averaged 27.8 points, 8.9 boards and 5.7 assists. The Celtics have gone 15-3 during Tatum’s surge.

Jaylen Brown had 21 points, four assists and three rebounds and has been excellent since the All-Star break as Brown has topped 20 points in six straight games, averaging 26.2 points, 5.3 boards and 3.5 assists while shooting 56.0 percent from the floor and 44.7 percent (17-for-38) from long distance. After missing a game with a minor injury, Kristaps Porzingis had 24 points and nine rebounds. He has scored in double digits in 14 straight appearances dating back to Jan. 13, averaging 22.1 points and 7.1 boards while shooting 52.1 percent from the floor and 46.7 percent from beyond the arc.

During that 11-game winning streak, the NBA’s longest this season, Boston had outscored opponents by 243 points with an average scoring margin of +22.1 points during that span. The Celtics won three games by more than 40 points in that stretch and have become the first team in NBA history to record three 50-point wins in a single season.

The Celtics have scored 40+ points in the first quarter six times this season, which is tied for the most 40-point first quarters in a single season in franchise history along with the 1959-60 season. The C’s have also registered at least 16 total 40-point quarters for the third time in franchise history while matching the 1961-62 season.

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Why Bet on Denver Nuggets?

Denver also might have been looking ahead to this game on Tuesday as it had a six-game winning streak snapped in a 117-107 OT loss to Phoenix even though the Suns were without All-Star Devin Booker. The Nuggets trailed by as many as 22 in the second half but only had five points in OT. Nikola Jokic’s last-second floater missed to send the game into overtime.

“I’ve seen (Jokic) make that 95 out of 100 times,” Jamal Murray said. “We all thought it was going in. “Such a winnable game. That may be one of the worst losses we’ve had.”

Jokic finished with 25 points, 16 rebounds and five assists in 44 minutes. He had his lowest assist output since January, but the two-time MVP extended his game double-double streak to eight, and he’s recorded four triple-doubles during that stretch.

Jamal Murray led Denver with 28 points to go with nine assists and seven rebounds. Murray has been scoring well recently and has at least 20 points in four of his last five appearances. He’s averaging 22.5 points, 6.7 assists and 4.2 rebounds since the All-Star break. Tuesday was his 180th career game with at least 20 points. The Nuggets have won 15 straight games when Murray scores 30+ points.

Michael Porter added 20 points and seven boards in the tough defeat. The Nuggets often go as Porter does as they are 32-8 all-time when he has a double-double and 12-2 when he scores at least 30. After missing the previous game with a minor injury, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope had 11 points and five rebounds.

Since the All-Star break, the Nuggets lead the league in assists per game with 35.8, rank in in field goals made (48.8) and field-goal percentage % (54.2) and third in steals per game (9.8). Prior to the All-Star break, the Nuggets were tied for 19th in points per game in the league (113.9). Post break, they are fourth at 123.3 ppg.

If NBA referees are actually making a concerted effort to call fewer fouls, Nuggets coach Michael Malone hasn’t noticed. “I don’t see it,” he said after Tuesday’s game. “because we never get foul calls. I don’t really see it. I haven’t noticed a difference.”

Data shows that foul calls and free-throw attempts are down league-wide in recent weeks. Denver’s Aaron Gordon was called for a personal foul against Phoenix’s Kevin Durant with 1:15 remaining in regulation on Tuesday, a call the NBA now says was incorrect.

Bet Denver to Win
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Celtics vs Nuggets NBA Expert Prediction

Celtics 113, Nuggets 110

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January 19, 2024

It’s a potential preview of the 2024 NBA Finals on Friday as the Western Conference-favored and defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets visit the Eastern Conference-favored Boston Celtics, who are solid favorites on the NBA odds with an unbeaten home mark. 2024 NBA Expert Analysis Denver vs Boston | MyBookie Sportsbook NBA Week 13

How to Bet Nuggets at Celtics NBA Odds & TV Info

When: Friday, 7:30 PM ET
Where: TD Garden
TV: ESPN
Stream: ESPN+
Radio: Tunein.com
NBA Odds: Celtics -2 (total 59.5)

Series History

First meeting this season and they split last year, each winning at home quite easily. The one in Denver was a 123-111 Nuggets victory. Nikola Jokic had 30 points, 12 rebounds and 12 assists for the Nuggets, who shot 57% from the floor and made 17 of 30 3-pointers despite playing without Jamal Murray. Jaylen Brown scored 30 points and Jayson Tatum had for Boston, which shot just 9 of 33 from 3-point range. This will be a matchup of brothers as Boston guard Jrue Holiday and Nuggets guard Justin Holiday are brothers. Boston leads 60-38 all-time but is a brutal 9-40 as the road team.

Why Bet on Denver Nuggets?

The Nuggets started a five-game Eastern Conference road trip with a 126-121 loss in Philadelphia on Tuesday in a matchup of MVP centers in Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid – and both were great but Embiid was a bit better with 41 points and 10 assists. Embiid had his 18th straight 30-point game, tying Hall of Famer Elgin Baylor for the sixth-longest streak in NBA history.

The Sixers shot 15-of-31 from three and went to the free throw line 34 times as a team. The Nuggets couldn’t guard them and that really hurt Denver’s chances when the fourth quarter rolled around. Denver did shoot 50.6% from the field and 41.4% from three. The loss snapped a 31-game winning streak when shooting 50+ from the field and 40+ from three in the same game (last loss in 2017). All-time the Nuggets are now 102-5 when doing so.

“Love how hard our guys played,” Nuggets coach Michael Malone said, pointing to execution rather than effort as the difference. “… Obviously not the outcome we wanted, but proud of our effort. We just have to be a little bit cleaner for 48.”

Jokic had 25 points, 19 rebounds and three assists, tying his season low in assists, but he did record his fourth straight double-double and 35th of the season in 41 games. That puts him one back of Domantas Sabonis for the NBA lead in that category. He grabbed 11 offensive rebounds, a new career-high and just the 18th time in franchise history a player grab 11 offensive boards in a game. Jokic hasn’t been quite as consistent as usual over the last month, but he’s still averaging 22.9 points, 10.8 boards, 8.6 assists and shooting a whopping 67.3 percent from the floor over his past 16.

Jamal Murray had 17 points and 10 assists as the double-double was Murray’s fourth of the season and first involving assists since Nov. 3. He has scored at least 17 points in eight straight games to begin January, averaging 23.3 points and 7.4 assists in January.

Michael Porter Jr. finished with 20 points and five rebounds and has scored at least 20 points in three straight games and five of eight in January. Porter’s averaging 17.5 points and 5.4 rebounds this month while shooting 53.6 percent from the floor and 46.3 percent from beyond the arc. When MPJ rebounds, it usually means good things for the Nuggets as they are now 9-2 in games where he grabs 10+ rebounds. Compared to last season he already has eight more games with 10+ boards. Porter’s nine double-doubles are already tied for the second most in a season in his career (15 in 2020-21).

The Nuggets have made 10+ three-pointers in 14 consecutive games, marking the fourth longest streak in franchise history. It’s the fourth-longest active streak in the league.

When Denver holds a team to 109 points or fewer this season, it is 17-2 in those games. The Nuggets are ranked second in the league for fewest points allowed (111) behind Minnesota (107.4).

Why Bet on Boston Celtics?

The Celtics (32-9) are the only team still with single-digit losses and the NBA’s only unbeaten at home at 20-09 following a 117-98 rout of San Antonio on Wednesday. The Spurs were down just 32-29 early in the second before the Celtics scored eight in a row and 18 of the next 22 points. Another 8-0 run at the end of the half made it 70-45 Boston at the break and it was over.

“Everybody can hoop on that team. Everyone’s a threat on the court,” said Spurs rookie star Victor Wembanyama of facing Boston. “But at the same time, they all know their roles. And they’re all willing to share the ball, from the most important franchise guys to the role players. Everybody is ready to compete and to make the sacrifices.”

Jayson Tatum led Boston with 24 points and five rebounds in 32 minutes. Tatum’s production has been erratic of late, perhaps due to an ankle injury that sidelined him Jan. 8. Prior to missing that contest, he’d scored at least 25 points in seven straight games, but in five games since he’s reached that mark only twice.

Jaylen Brown returned after sitting out Boston’s 105-96 victory over the Raptors on Monday with a hyperextended right knee and had 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists. He scored 20 points for the fifth time in his last six games and is averaging 24.5 points, 5.4 boards and 3.5 assists since the beginning of December while shooting 53.4 percent from the floor and 40.0 percent from three-point range.

Tatum is the only NBA player averaging at least 27.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and less than 3.0 turnovers per game this season. Tatum and Jaylen Brown are also the only two players in the Eastern Conference averaging 23.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, and shooting at least 37 percent from the three-point line this season.

Boston is the only team in the NBA to rank in the top 3 in both offensive and defensive rating this season. The last time the Celtics posted a 32-9 record in the first half of the season was in 2010-2011. The Celtics lead the NBA in made three-pointers with 665 total threes this season, followed by Dallas with 636. Boston’s franchise record 20 consecutive wins at the TD Garden to open the season is tied with the 1952-53 Syracuse Nationals and 1985-86 Houston Rockets for the 11th best home start in NBA history.

The Celtics were without Kristaps Porzingis (right knee inflammation) and Derrick White (left ankle sprain) on Wednesday but neither is on the injury report for Friday.

Expert Prediction

Celtics 118, Nuggets 112