New Orleans needs its first win, but Denver arrives with Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray both producing 67 points through three games.
The Pelicans bring an 0-3 record and the league’s No. 25 power index ranking into a matchup with Denver, which is 1-2 and ranked No. 23. New Orleans has scored 124.7 points per game but allowed 128, while the Nuggets are averaging 113 and giving up 121.7. Zion Williamson has 62 points in three games, but Denver’s Nikola Jokic has matched that scoring punch with 67 points alongside 29 rebounds and 26 assists; Jamal Murray has also scored 67. The deciding battle is whether New Orleans can turn its high-scoring start into stops against Jokic’s playmaking and Denver’s two leading scorers.