The Denver Nuggets are off to their best record in franchise history through 58-games at 40-18.

The Nuggets will be challenged Friday night (February 28) as they travel to the City of Angels to face the Clippers. The LA Clippers are 1.0 games behind the Nuggets for the second seed in the western conference with a record of 39-19. The Clippers also have the best home record in the western conference at 23-6.

A lot of attention will be on this matchup with another nationally-televised showcase for the Nuggets, who have struggled on national television this season. The contest will air on ESPN at 10:30pm ET. A Nuggets road win on this stage can help shift the narrative of Denver being a second-tier championship team.

Even with their best record in franchise history, the Nuggets championship aspirations remain under the radar within the gambling community. Fan Duel sportsbook placed the Nuggets championship odds at +2500, which seems to be the general consensus within the gambling community.

Betting Statistics/Trends

Denver opens up as a +5.5 underdog to the LA Clippers with the o/u set at 218.5. 57% of the money on the ML is going to LA while 53% of bettors believe the Nuggets will cover the spread of +5.5. 73% of the public is betting on this game to hit the over. (Action Network).

The Nuggets are 28-27-3 ATS this year, while the Clippers have a record of 31-27 ATS. The Clippers and Nuggets are also trending in opposite directions in their last ten games with the o/u. Los Angeles is 3-7 in their last ten, while Denver comes in at 7-2-1. The Nuggets total has gone over in seven of Denver’s last ten games. The Clippers total has gone under in five of LA’s last six games. The Nuggets games have been more high-scoring then expected while the Clippers games have been low-scoring.

When dealing with straight bets, both franchises have been trending up over the past month or so. The Nuggets are 6-2 in straight bets in their last eight games. The Clippers have been consistently winning their straight bets a while longer with a record of 12-6 in their last 18 games.

Over the past couple seasons, the Nuggets have fared well ATS against the Clippers with a record of 5-1. This is good news for Nuggets bettors with Denver being +5.5 underdogs. During the span of those six matchups between Los Angeles and Denver, it’s also important to note the total has hit the under in four of those six games.

The Nuggets have been an upper-echelon defensive team all season ranking 10th in net defensive rating at 108.2. The Clippers offensive net rating ranks seventh in the association at 112.1, which sets up the key to a Nuggets victory. The Nuggets must defend and keep the game at a slower, low-scoring pace for their BEST chance of victory on the road against an elite team. Although the Nuggets offensive net rating is top-ten as well, they shouldn’t try to win in a shoot-out with a team like the Clippers, who have several All-NBA caliber defenders.

The Nuggets have an 97-79 record in the all-time regular season series between Denver and LA which includes a current three game win-streak.