Two teams that are on a roll collide this weekend, as the Denver Nuggets visit the Portland Trail Blazers, who are defying the optics of an early-season coaching upheaval by winning games. Will the Nuggets bag another victory? Or, will the Blazers pull off a bad beat and upset the visiting Nikola Jokic-led Denver side?
Catch this game live on Saturday, November, October 1, 2025 at 10:00 AM, Manila time
Away: Denver Nuggets (3-1, 1-1 Away)
Projected Starting Five:
- Jamal Murray
- Christian Braun
- Cameron Johnson
- Aaron Gordon
- Nikola Jokic
The Nuggets’ season-opening loss to Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors feels like it happened a long time ago. Since then, Denver has racked up three consecutive victories, including its 122-88 drubbing of the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday at home.
Nikola Jokic continues to be the gift that keeps on giving for Denver, and his presents come in the form of triple-doubles. Jokic extended this trip-dub streak to begin a season to four by hammering the Pels with 21 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists, while shooting 10-for-15 from the field in only 28 minutes. With Jokic as the unquestioned focal point of their offense, the Nuggets are now leading the league after four games with a 126.2 offensive rating and second with a 59.9 effective field goal percentage.
Denver is 6-1 against the spread in its last seven regular-season games, dating back to the 2024-25 campaign.
Home: Portland Trail Blazers (3-2, 1-1 Home)
Projected Starting Five:
- Jrue Holiday
- Shaedon Sharpe
- Deni Avdija
- Toumani Camara
- Donovan Clingan
If the Blazers are bothered by the recent arrest of head coach Chauncey Billups, they are surely doing an admirable job of keeping a poker face on. Portland, with Tiago Splitter now calling the shots as the team’s interim head coach, has improved to 3-1 since the FBI took custody of Billups. Overall this season, the Blazers are 3-2. They are on a two-game win streak as well, having defeated the Los Angeles Lakers (122-108) and the Utah Jazz (136-134) on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively, to finish a three-game road trip on a winning note.
Veteran point guard Jrue Holiday is showing there’s plenty of gas left in his tank, as he’s averaged 25.5 points in the last two games. Meanwhile, Deni Avdija has put up 22.0 points in the same stretch. Portland’s defense, however, is perhaps its biggest asset and gives the team its best chance to stun the Nuggets. On the season, the Blazers are 10th in the league with a 111.8 defensive rating and No. 1 overall with a 19.2 percent defensive turnover rate.
The Blazers are 4-1 against the spread in their last five home games since the previous season.
Picks
Spread: Portland Trail Blazers (+4.5)
Over/Under: Under (239.5)
