Nuggets vs. Pelicans prediction, odds and best NBA prop bets for Sunday, December 22nd

The New Orleans Pelicans’ nightmare season continued on Sunday as they blew a second-half lead against the New York Knicks and suffered their 24th loss in 29 games.

Now they face a brutal back-to-back duel against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. Jokic is currently the MVP favorite, but Denver is just the No. 6 seed in the Western Conference at 14-11 in 25 games.

The oddsmakers have favored the Nuggets on the road, which hasn’t worked out well for them this season. As an away favorite, Denver is just 1-6 against the table – the third-worst record in the NBA.

New Orleans still trails Zion Williamson and ranks 29th in the NBA in net rating this season.

Here’s a breakdown of the odds, players to watch in the prop market, and my prediction for Sunday’s contest.

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

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Money line

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Nuggets injury report

Pelican Injury Report

Denver Nuggets Best NBA Prop Bet

I love this matchup for MPJ ​​as he led the Pelicans to 24 points on 10 of 18 shooting earlier this season.

With New Orleans in turmoil, Herb Jones will likely face Jama Murray, which could potentially give Porter Jr. a favorable matchup.

Additionally, MPJ is averaging 18.4 points per game and now faces the No. 27 NBA defense. He scored 16.5 points in 17 of his 25 games this season.

New Orleans Pelicans best NBA prop bet

Rookie center Yves Missi has been one of the few bright spots for New Orleans this season, averaging 9.3 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. He has been a starter since moving to the starting lineup and has averaged 9.1 rebounds per game in that role and collected at least 10 boards in eight of his last 12 games.

Dealing with Nikola Jokic isn’t easy, but Denver ranks just 17th in the NBA in opponent rebounds per game. Don’t be shocked if Missi has a big game coming up on Sunday.

As banged up – and bad – as the Pelicans have been this season, they have one win over Denver (Jokic missed that game) and are 6-5 as home underdogs.

The Nuggets recently lost to Portland as 8.5-point road favorites and have been terrible against the team all season.

If the Pels use most of their healthy rotation players in this game, I think they can hold out.

Denver ranks 12th in the league in net standings – much better than New Orleans, but has an average advantage of less than a point as the away favorite in the 2024-25 season.

Don’t be shocked if this game ends up being closer than the oddsmakers expect.

Selection: Pelicans +9.5 (-110)

Odds are updated regularly and are subject to change.

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Find Peter Deweys NBA betting record here (Futures included). You can also follow my daily pieces on BetStamp here.