NBA

Denver Nuggets at Miami Heat

· National Basketball Association
24-16, 12-8 Away

vs

20-19, 10-7 Home
Embed this event in your website

Denver faces Miami, seeks 5th straight road win

Denver Nuggets (24-16, fourth in the Western Conference) vs. Miami Heat (20-19, ninth in the Eastern Conference)

Miami; Friday, 8 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Denver hits the road against Miami aiming to extend its four-game road winning streak.

The Heat are 10-7 in home games. Miami is ninth in the Eastern Conference with 15.1 fast break points per game led by Tyler Herro averaging 3.7.

The Nuggets are 12-8 in road games. Denver is 6-4 in one-possession games.

The Heat are shooting 45.5% from the field this season, 0.9 percentage points lower than the 46.4% the Nuggets allow to opponents. The Nuggets are shooting 50.0% from the field, 4.0% higher than the 46.0% the Heat's opponents have shot this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Herro is averaging 24.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and five assists for the Heat.

Russell Westbrook is scoring 13.2 points per game and averaging 5.1 rebounds for the Nuggets.

LAST 10 GAMES: Heat: 5-5, averaging 109.2 points, 44.0 rebounds, 27.5 assists, 8.0 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 46.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 110.9 points per game.

Nuggets: 7-3, averaging 119.7 points, 47.3 rebounds, 30.5 assists, 8.3 steals and 5.5 blocks per game while shooting 49.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 111.9 points.

INJURIES

: Heat: Dru Smith: out for season (achilles), Josh Richardson: day to day (heel).

Nuggets: Aaron Gordon: day to day (calf), DaRon Holmes II: out for season (achilles), Nikola Jokic: day to day (elbow), Vlatko Cancar: out (knee).

Regular Season Series

DEN leads series 1-0

Matchup Prediction

Heat: 45.7%
Nuggets: 54.3%
*According to ESPN's Basketball Power Index

Miami Heat Miami Heat Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Josh Richardson, SG Out Jan 16
Dru Smith, G Out Dec 27
Denver Nuggets Denver Nuggets Injuries
NAME, POS STATUS DATE
Vlatko Cancar, SF Out Dec 4
DaRon Holmes II, C Out Jul 23

Nuggets Last 5

Date OPP Result
vs LAC W 126-103
vs BKN W 124-105
@ DAL W 112-101
@ DAL W 118-99
vs HOU L 128-108

Heat Last 5

Date OPP Result
@ GS W 114-98
@ UTAH W 97-92
@ POR W 119-98
@ LAC L 109-98
@ LAL L 117-108

Game Information

Kaseya Center

Location: Miami, FL
Capacity:

2024-25 Northwest Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Oklahoma City 34 6 .850 - W4
Denver 24 16 .600 10 L1
Minnesota 21 19 .525 13 L1
Portland 13 27 .325 21 L4
Utah 10 29 .256 23.5 L1

2024-25 Southeast Standings

TEAM W L PCT GB STRK
Orlando - 19 L1 0.54761904 23
Atlanta 1 19 W2 0.525 21
Miami 1.5 19 L2 0.51282054 20
Charlotte 11.5 28 W1 0.24324325 9
Washington 15.5 33 L8 0.15384616 6
Full Standings

NBA News

Knicks' Karl-Anthony Towns (thumb) sits out vs. Wolves

Knicks' Karl-Anthony Towns (thumb) sits out vs. Wolves

Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns sat out Friday night's matchup against his former team, the Timberwolves, marking his second straight missed game due to a bone chip and sprained thumb.

Windhorst: Jimmy Butler's No. 1 goal is to get traded

Windhorst: Jimmy Butler's No. 1 goal is to get traded

Brian Windhorst details what is going on behind the scenes in the Jimmy Butler saga.

Thunder say Chet Holmgren to be reevaluated in 3-5 weeks

Thunder say Chet Holmgren to be reevaluated in 3-5 weeks

The Oklahoma City Thunder said Friday that Chet Holmgren continues to make progress in his recovery from a pelvic fracture and will be reevaluated in three to five weeks.

Heat's Jimmy Butler to start, says of future plans, 'I'm back'

Heat's Jimmy Butler to start, says of future plans, 'I'm back'

With his seven-game suspension over, Jimmy Butler returned to the Heat's starting lineup Friday night against the Nuggets and addressed his future plans with a short statement: "I'm back."

Fantasy basketball picks and betting tips for Friday

Fantasy basketball picks and betting tips for Friday

Eric Moody breaks down Friday's games and offers his top fantasy streamers and favorite bets for the nine-game slate.