The Denver Nuggets will host the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night, looking to take the first step towards evening the season series with a home victory.

The Nuggets have played the Spurs twice this season, losing by 32 points on January 13 (back in the days of Plumkic, may they rest in peace) and then losing by two points on January 31, when a Will Barton 3-pointer at the end of the game wasn’t able to fall.

The Nuggets may be able to steal a win here, if they’re able to really put on an impressive offensive performance in the first 36 minutes of the game. The Spurs lost to the Jazz Monday night, and this time, THEY’LL be the ones on the second night of a back to back. Take that, NBA schedule creators! There’s the added bonus of this being the nightcap for the TNT broadcast, which means that NBA fans that have a real serious commitment to watching basketball very late at night will have an opportunity to see them on national TV.

The Basics

Who: San Antonio Spurs at Denver Nuggets (30-26, 22-7 home)

When: 8:30 PM MST

Where: Pepsi Center, Denver, Colorado

How to watch/listen: TNT and KKSE Altitude Radio AM950 (blacked out on League Pass)

Rival blog: Pounding the Rock

Lineups

Position
Spurs
Nuggets
Edge
PG
Dejounte Murray
Jamal Murray
Nuggets
SG
Danny Green
Gary Harris
Even
SF
Kyle Anderson
Will Barton
Even
PF
LaMarcus Aldridge
Wilson Chandler
Spurs
C
Pau Gasol
Nikola Jokic
Nuggets
Bench
Patty Mills, Manu Ginobili, Tony Parker, Bryn Forbes, Davis Bertans, Joffrey Lauvergne
Devin Harris, Monte Morris, Malik Beasley, Torrey Craig, Juancho Hernangomez, Darrell Arthur
Spurs

Injury report: LaMarcus Aldridge (day-to-day), Tony Parker (day-to-day), Dejounte Murray (day-to-day), Kawhi Leonard (out), Rudy Gay (out); Paul Millsap (out), Tyler Lydon (out).

Three things to know

The Spurs are having their own injury concerns too. Kawhi Leonard was able to play in the Spurs first game against the Nuggets, but won’t be available tonight. Rudy Gay can’t go with a heel injury. Dejounte Murray’s ankle has been giving him trouble, and Tony Parker has had to deal with a back injury. But – but! – that merely means that Gregg Popovich gets to flex his coaching muscles.

This does provide the Nuggets a chance to take advantage of a team that doesn’t have their best players, and having just played 24 hours earlier, maybe they’ll be tired enough for the Nuggets to be too much. We all know that drive from the airport takes an hour, at best! PS, vote for Vic Lombardi to be the new voice you hear on the train at DIA. I’d nominate myself, but I say the letter “A” the same way Bruno Mars does to start his song “That’s What I Like.”

Rebound the basketball. The Nuggets have to be able to get rebounds on both ends of the court. The Spurs run such an advanced offense, if the defense gives them another opportunity to get the ball in the basket, they’re just shooting themselves in the foot. If they force a missed shot, rebound the ball, and run downcourt like they’re running from a fire. With the Spurs coming to Denver with no rest, forcing them to defend for 40 seconds is going to create an open shot. The Spurs are one of the slowest teams in the league – Kyle Anderson’ nickname is SLOMO for crying out loud – let’s get them running!

Play fun basketball. This is the Nuggets last home game before the All-Star break, and nearly every team in the league is ready for the break. There’s a power and energy that comes into your life when you’re having fun, and the Nuggets could use an energy boost. Get out there and have a good time! Don’t get beat up when mistakes happen, and don’t get frustrated when things happen that are out of your control. Give the ball to Jokic, and make magic happen out there. Block shots, get steals, and find joy in the competition.

Prediction

Nuggets 115 – Spurs 102. The South Platte River is cooler than the San Antonio River.