Spurs vs. Nuggets Prediction and Odds for January 3: Wemby, Jokic Battle As Present Meets Future

The San Antonio Spurs (17-16) will take on the Denver Nuggets (19-13) in a matchup headlined by superstar centers Nikola Jokic and Victor Wembanayama.

The Spurs won two of their last five and are 5-9 on the road. They have not played the Nuggets yet but will see them again on Saturday for the second time in two days.

The Nuggets won three straight games and are 7-2 with Russell Westbrook in the starting lineup. They're 10-5 on the road and hold on to the fourth seed in the Western Conference standings.

Here, we will break down the matchup and share our best Spurs vs. Nuggets betting picks.

Spurs vs. Nuggets Betting Odds for Friday, January 3

The Spurs are 18-15 (54.6 percent) against the spread, 8-6 (57.1 percent) ATS on the road, and 10-10- (50 percent) ATS as an underdog.

The Nuggets are 14-17-1 (45.2 percent) ATS, 7-7-1 (50 percent) ATS at home, and 8-14-1 (36.4 percent) ATS as a favorite.

Odds for the Spurs vs. Nuggets game are courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook. Head over to FanDuel, Bet $5, Get $250 in Bonus Bets if Your Bet Wins.

Spurs vs. Nuggets Prediction

San Antonio Spurs Preview

Let’s start at the head of the snake—the 7-foot-5 snake. Victor Wembanyama averaged an absurd 28.5 points, 10 rebounds, 4.8 assists, and 4.4 blocks on 48.8 percent shooting from the field and 37.7 percent from three in December.

San Antonio was 7-5 with Wemby on the court and 7-7 overall in December. They’re also 17th in offensive and 14th in defensive rating for the season as a whole, resulting in a net rating of -0.2 (16th).

The Spurs generate the highest amount of assists per possession but are also below average in turnover frequency. They’re right at 15th in rebound rate and often find themselves losing the three-point battle, shooting 34.4 percent from deep (21st).

To their credit, they held opponents to just 34.9 percent from beyond the arc, which ranks seventh in the league. 

The key matchup to watch here is obviously how Wembayama holds up against Jokic. In four meetings last season, he averaged 24 points, 11.8 rebounds, 4.5 blocks, and 4.3 assists, but shot just 37.6 percent from the field. Jokic also averaged 33.5 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 8.0 assists on 61.3 percent shooting. 

The Spurs will also be without Jeremy Sochan, who averaged 13.9 points and 8.3 rebounds.

Denver Nuggets Preview

The Nuggets are doing their best to get back on track and to keep their championship window open despite seemingly several teams in the Western Conference passing them in the pecking order.

Denver’s defense is shambolic. They’re 19th in defensive rating, which doesn’t sound horrible at first, but they finished December ranked 23rd in that category and gave up at least 120 points in four straight games, including 149 to the Cleveland Cavaliers on Dec. 28.

Their inability to manufacture stops forced them to play near-perfect offense. To their credit, they scored the second-most points per 100 possessions of any team in December and are fourth for the year, yet they only have a net rating of +3.4 (eighth).

The team appears to be at a crossroads with Michael Porter Jr. and may allegedly be interested in trading him for different pliers including Zach LaVine. 

The Nuggets are in the top 10 in rebound and turnover rate, but they’re a terrible 26th in bench net rating and have a propensity to collapse when Jokic is not on the floor.

Speaking of Jokic, he posted triple-doubles in three of his last four games and averaged 30.7 points, 13 rebounds, and 9.7 assists on 56.1 percent shooting for the year. He is at the center of everything Denver does and is currently enjoying his most aggressive season as a scorer in his career.

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Spurs vs. Nuggets Betting Pick

• Spurs vs. Nuggets pick: Spurs +7.5 (-110) at FanDuel

The Nuggets are clearly a better team than the Spurs are, but they have very little room for error on the offensive end because of their terrible defense. 

San Antonio’s league-leading assist percentage is a testament to their ball movement and constant motion. That will pose a problem for the Nuggets, who struggle to give multiple defensive efforts on the same possession and often find themselves disconnected or late to attach themselves to their matchup.

Jokic used his weight to bully Webanayama when they played last year. We expect another strong night from him but also believe the Spurs will pose enough problems to keep this game close.

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How to Watch Spurs vs. Nuggets on 1/3/25

• When: Friday, January 3 @ 7:00/9:00 p.m. MT/ET

• Where: Ball Arena, Denver, CO

• TV: NBA League Pass

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