Portland Trailblazers versus Denver Nuggets Pick Prediction NBA Pro Basketball Odds Preview 12-20-2012

The Denver Nuggets will be the road club as they battle the Portland Trailblazers in an NBA pro basketball contest on Thursday night. Tip off time from Portland is scheduled for 10PM Eastern Time with national television coverage provided by the NBA League Pass Channel. The odds will come out on Thursday afternoon in this game as there are several Portland players battle injuries. What is known is that leading scorer LaMarcus Aldridge will be out with an ankle injury that has been diagnosed as a sprain.Last year during the lockout the teams met three teams with Portland winning and covering two of the three games. Each team won and covered at home. Trend: Denver Nuggets are 5-0 ATS in their past five games.The Nuggets have won three straight games as they head to Portland. They come off the 112-106 home win against San Antonio on Tuesday as a -2 ½ point favorite. The Nuggets offense is beginning to rev up as they put up 122 points two nights earlier in Sacramento. They have shot up to number six in the NBA in scoring offense and they make 46.7% of their shots from the field. The Nuggets are 7-11 on the road this season as they play their 19th road game of 27 already this season. Portland is 7-4 on their home court. They have won three straight games all at home. Their notable win during this steak was a 98-90 victory against the Spurs. The Trailblazers come off the 95-94 home win on Sunday night to the New Orleans Hornets as a -5 point betting favorite. The Trailblazers have improved their defense holding their opponents to much lower point totals as before. They still allow 47% shooting which is 29th in the NBA. The Aldridge injury for Portland is huge because he was the team’s leader on the court and led them in scoring. Guards Wesley Matthews, Nolan Smith and Aleksander Pavolic are all questionable on Thursday.