NBA royalty takes the court on Saturday night as the Denver Nuggets host the star-studded Los Angeles Lakers. The Nikola Jokic-led Nuggets rank third in the Western Conference behind the Oklahoma City Thunder and Memphis Grizzlies.

Denver is 36-19 overall, nine games behind the first-place Oklahoma City Thunder, just as the NBA All-Star break starts this weekend. Why it matters: Each win drives them closer to a higher seed in the NBA playoffs.

The Los Angeles Lakers looked fantastic on Saturday night, beating their long-time rivals, the Denver Nuggets, on the road. It was a great night

Aaron Gordon talks about the current state of the Denver Nuggets and what they have to do to catch up to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic (15) passes the ball as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) and forward Chet Holmgren (7) defend in the second half of an NBA basketball game Thursday,

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander leads the MVP race over Nikola Jokic as the Oklahoma City Thunder outpace the Denver Nuggets in the west.

The Oklahoma City Thunder and the Indiana Pacers are the hottest teams in the NBA, with the best records since Jan. 1. However, the Pacers' defensive metrics dipped after they lost 125-116 to the Denver Nuggets on Monday.

Nuggets center Nikola Jokic found himself in familiar territory as the second half of the season began to dawn, firmly entrenched in this season's MVP race alongside Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.

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Star center Nikola Jokić, who is averaging a triple-double this season, has helped the Denver Nuggets win 18 of their past 23 games.

This NBA parlay features Denver ML, Jokic Over 40.5 P+R, OKC -7.5, and SGA Over 31.5 P+A. A data-driven breakdown of the best bets for Monday’s matchups.

Last year, Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks sent the Thunder home in the second round of the playoffs, although the Mavericks used a well-rounded defensive approach to slow down the Thunder, which is something the Lakers might not have, especially after getting rid of Anthony Davis .