Denver Nuggets at Chicago Bulls: Game Thread and Preview

The Denver Nuggets (5-2) head into the Windy City Tuesday night to take on the Chicago Bulls (4-2).

The Nuggets are coming off a pair of difficult back-to-back losses to the Miami Heat and Atlanta Hawks, and look to turn around their East Coast road trip with a victory against the Bulls.

J.R. Smith will make his first appearance of the season after serving a seven-game suspension to start the year. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Smith struggle out of the gate looking to reintegrate into this offense.

Kenyon Martin injured his leg on Friday night against the Heat, but his MRI revealed that there was no fracture and he is currently listed as day to day. He will likely sit out this contest. If Martin is unable to go, look for George Karl to turn to either Renaldo Balkman again or Malik Allen to start at power forward.

The Bulls are riding the momentum of a three-game winning streak, including impressive victories over the Cleveland Cavaliers and the pesky Charlotte Bobcats.

Tyrus Thomas will be out four to six weeks with a fractured left forearm he sustained while lifting weights, but he has been struggling this year anyway and hasn’t been much of a factor even when healthy. The Bulls might even benefit from removing him as a distraction.

In his absence, Taj Gibson is likely to get the start at the power forward spot again. He has been solid, but unspectacular in his starts so far. Also, look for some spot duty time for the Bulls other rookie, James Johnson.

Mismatch in favor of the Nuggets - Carmelo Anthony vs. Luol Deng

At this point, it is too hard for me to resist putting Carmelo Anthony versus almost anyone in the league as a mismatch in favor of the Nuggets. 

I think Deng is a physical enough of a defender to give ‘Melo some problems on the block, but the threat of Anthony’s sweet jump shot coupled with his superior quickness should prove to be too much for Deng to contain.

Deng’s size and lack of quickness will prove to be a disadvantage in this matchup. Look for ‘Melo to torch the Bulls and continue his 30-plus point performances.

Deng has been wildly inconsistent this season on the offensive end, and Anthony is a vastly improved defender. I wouldn’t expect much beyond a 10-15-point performance from Deng.

Mismatch in favor of the Bulls - John Salmons vs. whoever the Nuggets throw out there to start + J.R. Smith

John Salmons has been very inconsistent to this point, but he had a break-out performance on Saturday against the Bobcats with 27 points on 9-for-16 shooting.

The Nuggets have been torched by a combined 88 points in the past two games against the opposing team’s shooting guards and I would look for that trend to continue.

While I don’t think J.R. will get the start at the two-guard, I do see him playing the most significant number of minutes. Look for Salmons to have a strong game against Smith, who is sure to be rusty and who isn’t a strong defender even at his most polished.

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