Things didn’t go well for the Denver Nuggets last night. They faced the top team in the NBA and gave up 149 points. Absolutely ridiculous. The beauty of the NBA, however, is that you hardly have any time to devote to it. The Nuggets are back in action tonight against the Detroit Pistons. The Pistons are far from the best team in the NBA. They’ve been a top lottery team for at least a decade and really haven’t been good since trading the Nuggets for Allen Iverson in 2008. Of course, Denver has shown this season that it can contend with even the worst opponents of all records and can get a W against the Nuggets, so there’s no time to overlook this opponent either.

The essentials

WHO: Denver Nuggets (16-13) vs. Detroit Pistons (14-17)

When: 7:00 p.m. MST

Where: The tin. Denver, CO

How to watch/listen: Denver Stiffs doesn’t tolerate piracy…unless it’s the romanticized 17th century form. Altitude TV when available, NBA League Pass for those not participating in the Nuggets market, Altitude+, 92.5 FM Altitude Radio.

Rivals Blog: Detroit Bad Boys

The matchup

Injury report*: Jamal Murray – questionable (ankle), Aaron Gordon – out (calf), Vlatko Cancar – out (knee), DaRon Holmes II – out (hamstring), Trey Alexander – out (G-League), PJ Hall – out (G- League); Isaiah Stewart – probably (knee), Bobi Klintman – out (G-League), Daniss Jenkins – out (G-League), Cole Swider – out (G-League), Alondes Williams – out (G-League). *The Nuggets injury report had not been released at the time of writing.

The three things

What you should pay attention to: Perimeter defense

Last night I was worried that the Nuggets would be defending the interior, so of course they were fired from the perimeter. Pooh. I’ll switch to it tonight, not because my concerns about Denver’s ability to defend the paint and rebound have been assuaged, but because they’re once again up against a top pair of guards, and I hope they don’t over 50 give up this duo. Cade Cunningham is really becoming a star player and is starting to live up to the hype that accompanied him as the No. 1 overall pick in 2021. Jaden Ivey is also thriving and living up to the hype being the No. 5 overall pick in 2022. Whether it’s Jamal Murray, Russell Westbrook, Christian Braun or whether Michael Malone himself has to put on a Nuggets jersey tonight, I don’t care, Someone has to defend these guys and make their lives difficult

Here’s what you should remember: These are not your slightly older brother’s pistons

Things have been bad in Detroit for a very, very long time. Over the last fifteen seasons they have won as many U20 seasons as they have playoff appearances (2), but change is afoot. Cunningham may not have developed as quickly as some thought, but he has always shown early flashes and now they are being fully realized. Meanwhile, if you play in the high lottery year after year, I don’t care how bad you are at drafting, eventually you’re going to get a hit on some of those picks, and the Pistons seem to be hitting regularly now. In addition to Cunningham and Ivey, there is Jalen Duren (13th overall, 2022), who has proven to be a capable starting player, and Ausar Thompson (5th overall, 2023), who continues to develop. Detroit has also added veterans like Malik Beasley and Tobias Harris to balance its roster, and they found Simone Fontecchio on the Utah Jazz’s bargain list and made him a rotation player. They are by no means title contenders, but the days of expecting the Pistons to be a cakewalk are over. This is a young and talented team that is desperate to be a winner in the NBA. If the Nuggets don’t take them seriously, they could face a third loss in a row.

What to bet on: Jamal Murray over 20.5 points (-105)

I still recommend betting on Murray lines as they continue to pay out. Christmas stink aside, Jamal regularly scores over 20 points these days and it’s too easy to get -105 for over 20.5 points. I’m a little worried as it’s a B2B tournament and Jamal carries an injury warning so there’s a chance he’ll rest tonight, but if he’s confirmed then that seems like an easy bet to me .