Head coach Michael Malone led the Denver Nuggets to that historic championship. However, it became clear that Malone was being tuned out and was no longer effective. Thus, he was fired right before the 2025 NBA Playoffs in a desperate jump-start attempt. Since winning their only NBA championship in 2023, the Denver Nuggets have been in a perpetual NBA betting hangover. Denver is still good enough to be in the upper half of the top Western Conference playoff seeds. However, the inconsistent Nuggets are not considered to be a serious contender for the NBA championship.
2025 NBA Playoffs First Round Preview: Denver Nuggets vs. LA Clippers
| Date and Time: | Monday, April 21, 2025, 10 PM ET. |
|---|---|
| Location: | Ball Arena, Denver, CO. |
| TV Coverage: | TNT |
| Team | Spread | Total | ML | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Clippers | -1 -110 | 218½ -110 | -115 |  |
| Denver Nuggets | +1 -110 | 218½ -110 | -105 | |
| ||||
Denver Series Schedule
- Game 2: Clippers at Nuggets | Monday, April 21, 10 p.m. | TNT
- Game 3: Nuggets at Clippers | Thursday, April 24, TBD | NBA TV
- Game 4: Nuggets at Clippers | Saturday, April 26, 6 p.m. | TNT
- Game 5: Clippers at Nuggets | Tuesday, April 29, TBD | TBD*
- Game 6: Nuggets at Clippers | Thursday, May 1, TBD | TBD*
- Game 7: Clippers at Nuggets | Saturday, May 3, TBD | TBD*
Denver Head Coach
Head coach Michael Malone had been on the job since 2015. He had previous head coaching experience with the Sacramento Kings. Correlate that he led an online wagering franchise renaissance in Denver. He was fired on April 8 with a record of 47-32. Thus, he departed with a career record of 510-394, including 471-327 at Denver. David Adelman, an assistant under Malone, took over in his first NBA head coaching shot.
Denver Key Players
C Nikola Jokic is considered by many to be the top player in the NBA. Consider that Jokic is the Nuggets’ marquee man who led Denver to its first NBA championship. Incredibly enough, he was the 41st overall pick (2nd round) of Denver in the 2014 NBA Draft. In turn, Jokic was the NBA Finals MVP and is a 2-time NBA MVP. Jokic is a 7-time NBA All-Star, including this season. Last year in the playoffs, Jokic averaged 28.7 points, 13.4 rebounds, and 8.7 assists per game. This season, Jokic averaged 29.6 points, 12.7 rebounds, and 10.2 assists per game.
Denver Record, Metrics & History
Overall, Denver’s NBA metrics were 2nd for scoring offense, 1st for field goal percentage, 5th for 3-point field goal percentage, 23rd for free throw percentage, and 4th for offensive rebounding. On defense, the Nuggets’ metrics were 25th for scoring defense, 13th for field goal percentage permitted, 22nd for 3-point field goal percentage allowed, and 7th for defensive rebounding.
The Denver Nuggets’ final regular season record was 50-32 straight up, 38-43-1 against the spread, and 48-33 over/under the NBA betting total. As a result, Denver was fourth in the Western Conference playoff standings, 18 games behind the Oklahoma City Thunder.
While the Nuggets were a continual playoff team, they could not advance further than the Western Conference Finals. Denver has had stars like Dan Issel, Alex English, David Thompson, Carmelo Anthony, and Dikembe Mutombo. Still, the Nuggets lost in all four of their trips to the Western Conference Finals until 2023. Later on, Denver bested Utah and the Los Angeles Clippers in seven games to make the Western Conference Finals during the 2019-20 season. But the Nuggets could not beat the Los Angeles Lakers. Finally, in 2023, Denver won its first NBA title.