Warriors Big for 2-0 Edge
The Golden State Warriors gave the Chase Center a night to remember as they took out Game 1 in their first postseason game in their new arena against the Denver Nuggets.
The Nuggets had no answer for Jordan Poole, who announced himself on the biggest stage after getting the nod to start in place of the returning Steph Curry.
Let’s take a look at the latest news, stats, injury updates and NBA betting lines for Nuggets vs. Warriors.
Let’s check the latest NBA Picks, stats, injury reports, and NBA Odds for Nuggets vs Warriors. We’ve plenty of NBA Playoffs Odds for you to consider.
Denver Needs Secondary Production
Nikola Jokic was as productive as could be in a difficult road environment, but his 25 points, 10 rebounds and six assists night seemed lackluster by his MVP standards, which is largely down to the over-reliance on the Serbian superstar.
Coach Mike Malone needs to find a consistent No. 2 scoring option in order to allow Jokic to be his most effective because so long as the Warriors are able to scheme entirely for Jokic’s contributions on offense, there isn’t enough to have Golden State scrambling.
Once the Nuggets fell behind in Game 1, it felt like curtains for a team who doesn’t have the tools to chase teams down on the road.
“Give them credit. This is a very talented team with tremendous playoff experience,” said Malone. “You don’t want to play from behind in this building against this team.”
The question now is whether they can do enough to force the Warriors’ to turn their attention away from Jokic, even if just temporarily.
Smooth Sailing From Steph
Steve Kerr’s decision to start Poole ahead of the returning Curry certainly raised eyebrows, but to say it worked would be drastically understating the flexibility and effectiveness of the situation.
We mentioned in our NBA betting preview that Curry’s return would be critical to this team’s success, but for Game 1 it was simply more of a luxury than anything else.
Curry finished with 16 points, three rebounds and four assists, finishing a +17 in his 22 minutes on the floor.
The ability to utilize him with the second unit was a huge factor for player and team given Denver’s struggles off the bench, which in turn provides Kerr with a huge strategic advantage after seeing how well Poole handled his playoff debut.
Nuggets vs Warriors Head-to-Head
The Golden State Warriors were 123-107 winners in Game 1 of this first-round playoff series.
The Warriors closed as 7-point favorites and were comfortable against-the-spread (ATS) winners, leading by double digits for the entirety of the second half.
The two teams have now split their four meetings this season, with each side winning two games each.
Nuggets vs Warriors Game Information
- Game: Nuggets (0-1) vs Warriors (1-0)
- Location: Chase Center, San Francisco
- Day/Time: Monday, April 18th .10 p.m. ET
- Nuggets vs Warriors Live stream: NBA Game Pass
Nuggets vs Warriors Betting Lines
Nuggets vs Warriors Prediction
The Warriors were very impressive in Game 1 and, if you’re looking at betting online for Game 2, it’s difficult to make a case against them continuing that level of dominance.
The issue for Denver is how to generate more consistent offense, but the Warriors have been an elite half-court defense and defending their home court is something we should expect them to do throughout this series.
The Nuggets’ best offensive showings have come at home and their best defensive metrics have consistently come on the road.
I don’t think sportsbook makers have accounted for some shooting regression in a game that was otherwise well played by both defensive units. That sets up some good value on the full game unders as a result, which offers the best value on this game.
