Three of the NBA’s top offensive teams will be in action tonight on TNT as part of the network’s Thursday night double-header. The Cleveland Cavaliers host the Denver Nuggets (8 p.m. ET), followed by the Detroit Pistons visiting the Golden State Warriors (10:30 p.m. ET). Denver’s mission, should it choose to accept it, is to somehow contain the NBA’s most potent weapon: LeBron James. James accounts for nearly 30 percent of his team’s points and has scored at least 40 in three of the last four games. James is averaging a league-high 29.8 points, 8.4 rebounds (25th in the NBA) and 6.9 assists (7th), and is the only player to rank in the top 25 in each category. Denver is the league’s lone team with nine players averaging at least 7.5 points. Chauncey Billups is averaging 15.7 points and 6.0 assists, while leading Denver to a 3-0 record in his three appearances as a Nugget. The 4-3 Nuggets rank seventh overall in scoring (100.1 ppg), while the 5-2 Cavaliers are 10th (99.5 ppg) … The Warriors, who paced the league in scoring last season (111 ppg), rank third thus far at 102.6 ppg. The 5-2 Pistons will need to focus on keeping the 3-5 Warriors out of the middle and off the glass. Golden State ranks first in the league in offensive rebounds (14.4 orpg), third in points in the paint with 47.3 per game and fourth in second chance points with 17.1 per contest. Detroit’s Allen Iverson needs 41 points to tie Elgin Baylor for 19th on the all-time scoring list (23,149) and 69 to tie Adrian Dantley for 18th (23,177).
–NBA News
