Are injuries finally catching up to the Denver Nuggets?

After a fast start to the season, the Nuggets have lost four of their last 10 games, including Monday’s matchup at home against the Dallas Mavericks, to fall out of the top three in the Western Conference.

Denver is still a contender this season, but losing Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun to soft tissue injuries has shortened the Nuggets rotation in a big way early on this season. Plus, Jamal Murray (ankle) is questionable on Wednesday night. 

On Wednesday, Denver has a chance to get back on track against the Indiana Pacers, who are just 4-17 in the 2025-26 campaign after losing to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday. 

Pascal Siakam has had a big season for the Pacers, but injuries to several players – and Tyrese Haliburton’s season-ending Achilles injury from last season’s NBA Finals – have derailed Indy’s chances of getting back to the Eastern Conference Finals for the third season in a row.

Here’s a look at the latest odds, my favorite player prop and a prediction for Wednesday night’s matchup. 

Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook.

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Moneyline

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Nuggets Injury ReportPacers Injury ReportNuggets Best NBA Prop Bet

Earlier today, I shared in my NBA Best Bets column – Peter’s Points – why Jokic is a great prop target against Indy: 

This is a great matchup on Wednesday for Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, and he may have to play a few extra minutes with Jamal Murray questionable and Denver down a few starters.

So, I think the OVER on his rebounds prop is worth a look against an Indiana team that is 27th in opponent rebounds per game and 22nd in rebounding percentage this season. Jokic is averaging 12.8 rebounds on 20.7 rebound chances per game, and he’s coming off a 20-board game against Dallas on Monday.

The Nuggets star has 13 or more rebounds in 10 games this season, and he should beat up on a Pacers frontcourt that doesn’t have an elite option down low to deal with him. Jokic had 14 boards in 31:43 of playing time against the Pacers earlier this season.

These teams combined for just 217 points earlier this season in Denver, but the Nuggets’ defense has taken a step back since then.

After starting the season as a top-five team in defensive rating, the Nuggets have slipped to 16th in the league with Gordon and Braun missing time. Now, they’re facing a Pacers team that is getting a little healthier with Andrew Nembhard, T.J. McConnell and Bennedict Mathurin back from injury.

Indiana isn’t a good defensive team either, ranking 20th in defensive rating, so I think we could see a high-scoring game on Wednesday. 

The OVER is 13-7 in Denver’s games – the third best mark in the NBA – and the Nuggets have combined for 237 or more points in seven of their last 10 games. 

As long as the Pacers can get into the 110-point range, this game should go OVER on Wednesday.

Pick: OVER 236.5 (-110 at DraftKings)

Odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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Find Peter Dewey’s NBA betting record here (futures included). You can also follow my daily plays on  BetStamp here.

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