Aside from the team's recent string of injuries and five-game losing streak (snapped on Saturday!), the Denver Nuggets looked like a strong contender to finish second in the Northwest division since the Oklahoma City Thunder are clear and away the best team there. But the Nuggets are now bunched in with the rest of the division by only a couple of games.
While they currently hold a playoff spot, the Nuggets don't fare as well in the Hollinger NBA Playoff Odds generator. The Nuggets are the first team out of the Western Conference playoff order with a 65.1 percent chance. The Memphis Grizzlies beat them out by just one-tenth of one percent. The gap ahead of the Grizzlies and the Nuggets is 12 percentage points and below them the Minnesota Timberwolves are closest with a 26.3 percent chance at the playoffs. That eighth and final playoff spot is a fight to death between the Nuggets and the Grizzlies.
The Nuggets are projected to finish 36-60 with the best possible record being 48-18 and the worst at 22-44. Yeah, that 36-60 record is probably closer to the truth if the team keeps dealing with these incessant injuries.