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What: Phoenix Suns At Denver Nuggets
Where: Pepsi Center in Denver, CO
When: 7:00 p.m. (AZ)
Watch: FSAZ (Locally) , NBA League Pass
The Phoenix Suns (14-10) are coming off a loss to the San Antonio Spurs which broke a five game winning streak. Meanwhile, the Denver Nuggets (14-10) who share the same record as the Suns, also lost their last game, and also against a tough Western Conference foe, the Oklahoma City Thunder.
Both the Suns and the Nuggets are teams competing for the playoffs, and are very similar in their overall level of talent. Neither team has a true superstar player, but both have a nice assortment of very good players and borderline all-stars. The Suns seemingly have a slight advantage being that they already beat the Nuggets once this season; a 114-103 victory on November 8th. However, the Suns will need to be sharp on offense and control the pace throughout the game to get a win tonight in Denver; something they failed to accomplish at home against the Spurs.
Stats:
Suns:
Nuggets:
Leaders:
Team: |
Suns |
Nuggets |
PPG |
Bledsoe (19.2)
|
Lawson (18.0)
|
RPG |
Plumlee (8.6)
|
Faried (8.5)
|
APG |
Bledsoe (6.4)
|
Lawson (8.0)
|
BPG |
Plumlee (2.0)
|
McGee (1.4)
|
SPG |
Bledsoe (1.7)
|
Lawson (1.3)
|
Team Stats:
Team |
Suns |
Nuggets |
Record |
14-10 (2nd in Division) |
14-10 (3rd in Division) |
PTS/G |
102.5 (10th) |
101.8 (12th) |
OPP PTS/G |
100.6 (18th) |
100.0 (14th) |
OFF RTG |
108.0 (6th) |
106.7 (11th) |
DEF RTG |
106.1 (18th) |
104.8 (15th) |
Probable Starting Line-Ups:
Suns:
G - Eric Bledsoe
G - Goran Dragic
F - P.J. Tucker
F - Channing Frye
C - Miles Plumlee
Nuggets:
G - Ty Lawson (Nate Robinson)
G - Randy Foye
F - Wilson Chandler
F - Kenneth Faried
C - J.J. Hickson
Injuries/Suspensions:
Suns:
None besides Emeka Okafor
Nuggets:
Ty Lawson - Questionable; stomach flu
Javale McGee - Out; fractured tibia
Jordan Hamilton - One game suspension
Keys to the Game:
Tonight's game will be a true test for the Suns. This Nuggets team, though also different in many ways, is a very even match-up for Phoenix.
- Free for three! The Nuggets have the best three-point defense in the league right now, limiting their opponents to only 32.4% from beyond the arc. The Suns will need to move well without the ball and make the right passes to make them pay from deep.
- Who's Next? The last time the Suns won, they had help from Markieff Morris who did it all, scoring 28 points and grabbing 10 rebounds. They are going to need someone else besides the Slash Bros. to step up again tonight and provide the additional star-caliber performance to help carry the team to victory.
-
Paint Patrol! The Suns gave up far too many points in the paint against the Spurs in their loss on Wednesday, and they'll need to protect the basket better and force Denver to take more jump shots if they they are going to get the win tonight...And yes, this includes getting rebounds!
Bonus!
To hear a podcast featuring the Nuggets GM Tim Connelly, visit the link below!
http://www.coloradosportsguys.com/2013/12/csg-153-denver-nuggets-general-manager.html