Warriors at Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets have been a different team since making a coaching change and have a chance to make a big statement for the future. The Nuggets, who knocked off Eastern Conference-leading Atlanta on Wednesday, will try to take out the best in the West when they host the Golden State Warriors on Friday. Denver is trying to win three straight for the first time in two months and is 4-2 under interim coach Melvin Hunt after a 115-102 win over the Hawks.
The Warriors got 27 points from Klay Thompson and ran their latest winning streak to five with a 105-98 win over Detroit on Wednesday, beginning a stretch of four straight games against sub.-500 teams. Thompson led the way with 22 points on Jan. 19, when Golden State shellacked the Nuggets 112-79 at home. Denver has been much better than that on the offensive end under Hunt and is averaging 106.3 points in the last six games while scoring at least 100 in each of those contests.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, CSN Bay Area (Golden State), Altitude (Denver)
ABOUT THE WARRIORS (51-12): Golden State is sitting on a comfortable lead over the Memphis Grizzlies for the top spot in the West and is two games ahead of the Hawks in the loss column in the race for the best record in the NBA. Thompson has been a key to the last three victories while pulling out of a shooting slump that saw him average 15 points on 22-of-70 shooting. The All-Star guard has improved those numbers to 24.3 on 28-of-51 over the last three, including 10-of-19 from 3-point range and 7-of-7 from the line.
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (24-41): Denver is opening up its bench and taking a long look at everyone on the roster as it builds for the future, and Wednesday’s win marked the second straight game in which 12 players logged at least eight minutes. The rapid substituting is allowing the Nuggets to keep up the pace on offense, and the players are responding positively to the change. "We're going," guard Randy Foye told the Denver Post. "Ty (Lawson's) pushing it, Kenneth (Faried) is running for alley-oops and dunks, and then you have those 3-point shooters. It's basically pick your poison, and that's the difference. It's more of a sense of urgency to run — and to get our fans those tacos if we score 110."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Warriors have won in their last two trips to Denver, both last season.
2. Nuggets F Danilo Gallinari is 7-of-10 from 3-point range in the last two games.
3. Golden State G Stephen Curry has hit a 3-pointer in 55 straight games – the second-longest stretch of his career and the longest active mark in the league.