Denver Nuggets vs Portland Blazers Prediction, 4/21/2021 NBA Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Denver Nuggets vs Portland Blazers

Date: Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Location: Moda Center in Portland, OR

TV: NBC Sports Northwest

Odds/Point Spread: Denver (-1.5)

Moda Center is the site where and the Portland Blazers (32-24) will take on the Denver Nuggets (37-20) on Wednesday. Denver opens this matchup as 1.5-point favorites. The total opens at 231.

The Denver Nuggets stepped onto the hardwood against the Memphis Grizzlies and earned the victory with a final of 139-137 in their last game. Denver finished the contest with a 50.0% field goal percentage (51 of 102) and converted 15 of their 39 3-pointers. At the free throw line, the Nuggets made 22 of their 26 tries for a rate of 84.6%. With regard to hauling in rebounds, they earned 58 with 13 of them being of the offensive variety. They also doled out 30 assists for the contest as well as forcing the other team into 14 turnovers and having 6 steals. In terms of defense, Denver let their opponent shoot 47.7% from the floor on 51 of 107 shooting. Memphis earned 33 dimes and had 15 steals in this matchup. On top of that, Memphis grabbed 47 boards (10 offensive, 37 defensive) and got 6 rejections. Memphis finished the game at 75.0% at the free throw line by making 18 of 24 shots. They buried 17 of their 40 tries from long range.

Nikola Jokic is a player who came through in the matchup. He accumulated 47 points on 20 out of 31 shooting. He played for 45:04 mins and also grabbed 15 boards. Jokic finished shooting 64.5% from the field and also earned 8 assists. One more player that was a major factor in the game for the Nuggets was Will Barton. He snagged 6 rebounds in 44:08 min on the basketball court. He shot 42.1% from the field for the contest by going 8-of-19 (28 points). Overall, Barton earned 7 assists.

Denver comes into this game with a mark of 37-20 on the campaign. They average 115.7 points per outing (4th in the league) while shooting 48.9% from the field. The Nuggets are shooting 38.5% on three-point shots (743 of 1,928) and 79.2% from the free throw line. As a unit, Denver is collecting 44.8 rebounds per game and has tallied 1,546 assists on the season, which ranks 3rd in the NBA in terms of passing the ball. They lose possession via turnover 13.6 times per contest and as a basketball team are committing 18.9 fouls per game. On defense, the Nuggets are forcing 13.9 turnovers per game and they draw 19.2 personal fouls. They surrender 36.1% on shots from beyond the perimeter while they are 9th in the league in opponents PPG (110.3). The Nuggets defensively are giving up and opponent field goal percentage of 46.9% (792 of 1,097) and they surrender 40.9 rebounds per game as a basketball team. They are currently ranked 27th in the league in giving up assists with 1,496 surrendered for the year.

When they last stepped on the hardwood, the Portland Blazers took a defeat with a final score of 109-101 when they played the Charlotte Hornets. The Blazers snagged 34 defensive rebounds and 13 offensive boards totaling 47 for the game. They also turned it over 8 times, while earning 7 steals for the game. The Hornets had 25 fouls for this game which took the Blazers to the free throw line for a total of 28 shots. They were able to bury 19 of them for a percentage of 67.9%. In relation to shots from 3-point land, Portland made 10 of their 36 attempts (27.8%). When the final whistle was blown, the Blazers finished the game shooting 36 out of 91 from the floor which gave them a shooting percentage of 39.6%. The Blazers allowed the Hornets to make 39 of their 83 tries from the field which left them with a rate of 47.0% in the game. They shot 41.9% from 3-point land via 18 out of 43 and walked away from this one shooting 13 out of 17 at the free throw line (76.5%). In the matter of how they attacked the glass, Portland permitted Charlotte to collect 46 in total (7 on the offensive side).

CJ McCollum was important for the Blazers for this game. He converted 8 of 22 in the game for a field goal rate of 36.4%, and had 6 rebounds. McCollum had 22 points in his 39:55 mins of playing time and accounted for 6 dimes in the matchup. Someone else who came through for Portland was Norman Powell. He walked away with 2 assists in 39:03 mins on the hardwood, and he knocked down 6 out of 16 from the floor. Powell wrapped this one up going 37.5% from the field while contributing 17 points and 3 total rebounds.

Portland has a mark of 32-24 for the year. On the offensive side of the ball, the Blazers are hitting on 44.6% from the floor, which is 26th in basketball. Portland has accounted for 6,403 pts on the campaign (114.3 per game) and they average 43.9 boards per contest. They are getting an assist 20.5 times per game (30th in the league) and they turn the ball over 11.4 times per contest. The Blazers are responsible for committing 19.2 fouls per game and they go 82.4% from the free throw line. The Blazers on the defensive side of the court are 25th in the NBA in points allowed per contest with 114.7. They are able to force 12.7 TO's per game and have allowed teams to shoot 47.8% from the field (27th in the league). The Portland defense gives up 37.3% on shots from distance (722 of 1,936) and their opponents are connecting on 77.4% of their free throw shots. They have allowed 25.2 assists and 45.7 boards every game, ranking them 20th and 21st in basketball.

Who will win tonight's NBA game against the spread?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Denver (-1.5)

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here