Christmas Day NBA – Denver Nuggets at Portland Trail Blazers

Friday, December 25th – 10:35 PM ET

Basketball Betting Spread:

The Week That Was: Nuggets

The team that pushed the Los Angeles Lakers to six games in the 2009 Western Conference Finals is not in existence – not now, at any rate. Denver has struggled this season, playing with the inconsistency and carelessness that defined the franchise before last year’s breakout campaign.

There’s simply no way that an athletic, physical and long team with agile performers and considerable versatility should be losing to inferior ballclubs. Yet, that’s exactly what coach George Karl’s Nuggets have been doing, and this past seven-day stretch was no exception.

Sure, Denver whipped a 20-8 Atlanta squad on Dec. 23, rolling past the Hawks in a 124-104 rout, but that performance only underscores the extent to which the Nuggets are underachieving.

The team that clobbered Atlanta also embarrassed itself over the past weekend. On Friday, Dec. 18, Denver fell to New Orleans, 98-92. Then, on Sunday, Dec. 20, the Nuggets got knocked around in Memphis and fell to the Grizzlies by a 102-96 count. The Hornets and Grizzlies are under .500, and yet they got healthy against a dysfunctional Denver club that has also lost to Charlotte, Minnesota, Milwaukee, and the Los Angeles Clippers.

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The Week That Was: Trail Blazers

Given all the injuries they’ve sustained, the Trail Blazers are the most overachieving team in the NBA.

Coach Nate McMillan is coaxing some A-grade efforts from a thin roster that is going above and beyond the call. As injuries continue to mount, the Blazers just keep winning… on the road… against quality opposition.

It was impressive enough that Portland fought past Phoenix on Dec. 17, digging out a 105-102 win behind 29 points from Jerryd Bayless, a reserve thrown into a starting role. That win, however, paled in comparison to what the Blazers did later in their week. They did lose at Orlando, 92-83, on Dec. 19, but they turned around the next day and won in Miami, 102-95. Improbably, that win in the second half of a back-to-back set was just the beginning of Portland’s remarkable road swing.

On Dec. 22, Portland lost Greg Oden’s backup, center Joel Przybilla, to a ruptured patella tendon. Yet, the Blazers still eclipsed the Dallas Mavericks, 85-81. The very next night against San Antonio, Portland took the court without its superstar guard, Brandon Roy. No problem – McMillan’s men turned back the Spurs, 98-94, behind 31 more points from Bayless.

Outlook & Pick

The math is simple and damning for Denver: The Nuggets, in their last eight games, are 4-0 at home and 0-4 on the road. The 2009 Western Conference runners-up are lazy, selfish and uninspired, and they’re losing boatloads of ballgames to teams they should crush.

The Trail Blazers are the opposite of the Nuggets: They win games they’re not supposed to win, and are fighting with uncommon resolve in every possession of every game. The Nuggets are a healthier and more talented team, but Portland possesses mental toughness in abundance. Trust the team of fighters to fend off the lazy underachievers on Christmas Night in the Pacific Northwest.

Pick: Trail Blazers