The defending champions Denver Nuggets once again had a dominant season, setting up a camp on top of the West ladder. However, this season, the Nuggets weren’t alone at the top. Nikola Jokic & Co. have constantly battled with the OKC Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves to retain the #1 seed. Currently, the Wolves hold the top spot with a 54-24 record, which is also the spitting image of the Nuggets record. Tomorrow, they have a chance to pull down the Wolves in an away game against the Utah Jazz at 9 PM ET.

As the Nuggets look to get back on top, they also have a lengthy injury report on hand as well. The availability of the championship duo, Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, remains uncertain. The team added Murray, who returned after a 7-game injury absence, to the Probable category with the knee injury. On the other hand, Joker also stands in the Probable category with a hip injury.

The Nuggets have played two games without either of the two stars this season and managed to win both games. Notably, the Siberian powerhouse has missed only three games this season, out of which, the Nuggets lost only one.

However, Jamal Murray has missed quite a few games for various reasons. His 7 straight game absence was because of a knee injury, and he returned to the floor for the last game against the Atlanta Hawks. Apart from that, he also missed 11 straight games with a hamstring injury. Bubble Murray has been the X-factor behind the Nuggets’ dominance, so Michael Malone has an important job to keep him playoff-ready.

Apart from the duo, the team also has two other players listed in the Probable category: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Julian Strawther. And, the explosive forward Aaron Gordon has been listed as Questionable with a right foot strain.

On the other end, the Jazz with a 12-game losing streak has important pieces missing for a long stretch: Lauri Markkanen, Jordan Clarkson, John Collins, and several others.

Jazz vs Nuggets: Starting lineup

Even though the Jazz is clearly not in prime form, the Nuggets would take this game seriously. The team not only will clinch the top seed with this win but also have an advantage before taking on the Wolves in the next game. If the Nuggets take down the Wolves in their back-to-back on Wednesday, then the top seed is pretty much sealed for the defending champions.

In the absence of Jamal Murray, Reggie Jackson filled in his spot. As both the guards are included in the injury report, Caldwell-Pope will be replaced by Christian Braun. Notably, Jackson and Braun, in the available limited minutes on the court, averaged 10.2 and 7.1 points respectively.

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As the towering center Jokic also misses out, Zeke Nnaji, who has an average of 3.2 points this season, will replace him. And Aaron Gordan will be replaced by Peyton Watson. As of now, the starting lineup of the Nuggets will look like this: Reggie Jackson, Christian Braun, Michael Porter Jr. Peyton Watson, and Zeke Nnaji.

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