Free NBA Pick: Pistons vs. Nuggets NBA Odds
Looking for Detroit Pistons vs. Denver Nuggets free NBA picks & NBA Odds? NBA betting sees the Pistons taking on the Nuggets on Sunday, January 23rd at Ball Arena, Denver, Colorado. Cappers Picks provides complimentary expert handicapping picks on all NBA basketball matchups so stay tuned for more FREE daily NBA hoops predictions like this Pistons Nuggets matchup.
2022 NBA Handicapping
(11-34) Detroit Pistons vs. Denver Nuggets (23-21)
Date: Sunday, January 23rd
Time: 8:00 PM ET
Venue: Ball Arena Denver, Colorado
NBA Moneyline Odds: Pistons | Nuggets (Bet Now!) Moneyline is off as of posting
NBA Betting Odds: Nuggets -11
NBA Betting Total: 217.5
Sunday, January 23rd finds the Detroit Pistons begin a home and home series versus the Denver Nuggets with the Pistons finishing up the set on Tuesday, January 25th in Detroit.
Both teams last played on Friday with the Pistons losing 101-111 to the Jazz while the Nuggets lost 118-122 to the undermanned Grizzlies.
The Pistons hold the all-time record having bested the Nuggets in 51 of their 93 meetings. Last season the squads played twice with Denver winning both contests.
Detroit Pistons
The Pistons have now won more games in the 2022 portion of this season than they did in the 33 prior games played in 2021. All of their losses have been against seeded teams but they’ve had some quality wins and can no longer be taken for granted as they’ll happily put in the effort to steal wins.
Friday marked the 20th consecutive game Jerami Grant has been out with the thumb injury and in his absence, rookie Cade Cunningham has inserted himself as the primary scoring option and facilitator.
Cunningham has steadily improved in his rookie campaign averaging 15.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 5.3 assists, and 1.3 steals but has work to do on his perimeter shooting (32.6% on 6.5 attempts). Although it’s notable he’s much closer to being above average since Grant got injured.
Case in point, pre Grant injury he was shooting 30.6% on 7.1 attempts through 20 games but in the 15 games he’s played while Grant is out he’s shooting much more efficient 36.1% on 5.5 attempts through 15 games.
Ultimately, the Pistons are building around Cunningham who is likely to be more of a triple-double threat star than one who is an offensive beast. His overall skillset will resemble the stars who improve everyone around him. And, perhaps as he grows with the team he may also become a 20 to 25 point producer.
Many suggest Grant is the player that could move Daryl Morey off Ben Simmons but I’m just not sure Simmons would augment Cunningham. Rather, it seems like they have many transferable skills and both need the ball in their hand to be at their best.
Perhaps Troy Weaver could involve a third team to get better assets that would complement their cornerstone. Time will tell.
Killian Hayes (hip) and Frank Jackson (conditioning) are questionable for Sunday. Jerami Grant (thumb) and Isaiah Livers (foot) are out indefinitely.
Denver Nuggets
Unlike the Pistons, the Nuggets have complementary talents to their superstar but unfortunately, the two best ones are on the shelf. That’s part of why Tim Connelly pulled the trade to bring in Bryn Forbes.
Losing PJ Dozier wasn’t ideal but Jokic and Denver are in win-now mode and since PJ is out for the season the move was made. These two teams had a deal on the table for Bol Bol but he failed his physical and subsequently underwent surgery and was included in the deal for Forbes with both players going to Boston.
We’ll have to come back and reflect on how that failed trade for Bol Bol impacted what happened in Denver as Forbes could end up being a better fit than Rodney McGruder would’ve been.
With the championship Bucks, Forbes shot 45.2 percent from the perimeter on 4.9 attempts, and this season with the Spurs he was shooting 41.7 percent on 3.8 attempts. It’s likely he’ll be given more opportunities to shoot in Denver given their lack of 3-point snipers.
Defense isn’t his calling card but with time spent in Milwaukee and under Popovich he can do enough within a system not to be a major liability. He had a rough debut shooting 4 of 13 for nine points.
Jeff Green (quarantine), Vlato Cancar (fractured foot), and Jamal Murry (ACL) are out indefinitely while Michael Porter Jr. (back surgery) is presumed out for the season.
NBA Betting Trends:
- The Nuggets are 2-5 ATS in their last 7 games.
- The Pistons are 2-15 SU in their last 17 games on the road.
- The total has gone OVER in 13 of Detroit’s last 19 games against a Western opponent
- The total has gone OVER in 5 of Denver’s last 5 games.
Free Detroit Pistons vs. Denver Nuggets NBA Prediction
Although the Pistons have improved they don’t have a counter for Jokci (not like any team does). Combine that with the Nuggets losing Friday and should equate to Denver jumping on Detroit right from the tip as they look to end this early.
4* Free NBA Betting Pick: Nuggets -11
If you’re looking for more NBA picks like this Detroit Pistons vs. Denver Nuggets matchup, we’ll be providing 4* free NBA predictions on the blog during the entire 2021 NBA season, and check out our Experts for guaranteed premium & free NBA picks!
Register here for a FREE NBABetting Account Now for Daily Free Picks & More Special Offers!