In something of a scheduing quirk, Friday’s game between the Rockets (9-9) and defending NBA champion Nuggets (14-8) is the fourth and final meeting between the teams in the 2023-24 regular season. All have come in the first six weeks of the season, and it’s the second time Houston has traveled to Denver in the past 10 days.
This time, it’s because both did not qualify for the eight-team quarterfinals of the NBA’s new in-season tournament. To ensure the same number of games for teams who did not advance, the league’s scheduling matrix matched same-conference opponents who were previously scheduled to play only three times, as opposed to four.
Yet, this matchup could be the first of the four in which both teams are at close to full strength. The Rockets won their first two games against Denver (in Houston), but the Nuggets didn’t have starting point guard Jamal Murray in either due to an injury.
Last week, the Nuggets defeated the Rockets in Denver, but Houston was missing its starting point guard, Fred VanVleet, who sat out on the second night of a road back-to-back.
This time, both floor generals are expected to play.