Nuggets move on without 'Melo'

As usual Thursday night in the NBA offers up a limited but noteworthy slate of games for a national TV audience to watch, and for oddsmaker.ag clients to wager on.

In the opener the Chicago Bulls, making a case for themselves as contenders in the Eastern Conference, get a shot at one of the big dogs when they host LeBron and his Miami Heat (8 pm Eastern, TNT). And on the back half the new-look Denver Nuggets, after finally trading away Carmelo Anthony (and others), host the defending Eastern Conference champion Boston Celtics (10:30 pm Eastern, TNT).

Denver started the second halfof this regular season by making the long-talked-of deal to send its two best players to New York for whatever it could get in return. The shorthanded Nuggets then came out and beat Memphis on Tuesday night 120-107.

In return for Anthony, Chauncey Billups and a few others the Nuggets get PG Raymond Felton and Fs Wilson Chandler and Danilo Gallinari, and more. And those new bodies should be ready to step in and play Thursday night.

So through Tuesday's play Denver is basically tied for the 5-6-7 spots in the West with Portland and New Orleans. But the Nugs are also just two games ahead of ninth-seeded Memphis.

Boston started its second half with a 115-93 victory at Golden State on Tuesday, so the Celtics are tied with Miami for the top spot in the East.

The Celts beat Denver 105-89 back in early December, but that, of course, was a very different Nuggets team than the one that will hit the court Thursday night.

Chicago, going into its first game of the second half Wednesday night at Toronto on Wednesday night, leads the Central Division by 13.5 games. And the Bulls are only 2.5 games back of the Celtics and Heat in the East. On top of that Chicago welcomes back C Joakim Noah this week, after he's missed the last two months with a thumb injury.

Miami, meanwhile, began its second half Tuesday night with a 117-97 romp over Sacramento. The Heat shot 57% on their way to covering the spread as 13.5-point favorites at oddsmaker.ag.

In the only meeting so far this season between these two teams Chicago beat Miami 99-96 at the United Center back in mid-January. The Bulls outrebounded the Heat that night 53-43 in earning a push on the line as 3-point favorites at Oddsmaker. And that game played OVER its posted total of 188.

As of Wednesday morning oddsmaker.ag is listing the Heat as -125 favorites to win the East this season, the Celtics at +150 and the Bulls at +600. On the other side of the bracket Denver is now getting +3,000 to win the West. And on the big board Miami is an even-money favorite at Oddsmaker to win the NBA championship, with Boston listed at +200, Chicago at +1,000 and the Nuggets at +10,000 (100/1).

And on a special oddsmaker.ag NBA futures prop a Heat-Lakers Finals series is being offered at +200, with any other Finals series matchup lined at -250.