Portland Trail Blazers (21-22, ninth in the Western Conference) vs. Denver Nuggets (30-13, first in the Western Conference)
Denver; Tuesday, 9 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Portland visits the Denver Nuggets after Damian Lillard scored 40 points in the Trail Blazers' 140-123 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
The Nuggets are 7-3 against Northwest Division opponents. Denver scores 117.0 points while outscoring opponents by 3.9 points per game.
The Trail Blazers are 4-6 against the rest of their division. Portland is fifth in the league in 3-point percentage, shooting 37.3% as a team from deep this season. Gary Payton II leads them shooting 100.0% from 3-point range.
The two teams match up for the fourth time this season. The Nuggets defeated the Trail Blazers 120-107 in their last matchup on Dec. 24. Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 29 points, and Lillard led the Trail Blazers with 34 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jokic is scoring 24.7 points per game with 10.9 rebounds and 9.8 assists for the Nuggets. Jamal Murray is averaging 16.4 points and 3.7 rebounds while shooting 45.1% over the last 10 games for Denver.
Lillard is shooting 45.0% and averaging 28.8 points for the Trail Blazers. Anfernee Simons is averaging 3.1 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Portland.
LAST 10 GAMES: Nuggets: 8-2, averaging 120.9 points, 43.3 rebounds, 29.4 assists, 6.9 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 52.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 110.5 points per game.
Trail Blazers: 4-6, averaging 117.6 points, 44.3 rebounds, 24.7 assists, 7.0 steals and 5.2 blocks per game while shooting 48.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.5 points.
INJURIES: Nuggets: Peyton Watson: out (adductor), Vlatko Cancar: day to day (leg), Jeff Green: out (hand), Jamal Murray: day to day (ankle), Collin Gillespie: out (leg).
Trail Blazers: Nassir Little: day to day (hip), Justise Winslow: out (ankle), Gary Payton II: day to day (adductor).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Associated Press
