The set-up: The phrase "Trust the Process" has been used to mock the Philadelphia 76ers but this year's team has given its fans hope that there is a future for the team which entered this season off a 28-win season, which had been preceded by years in which Philly had won just 19, 18 and 10 games. Philadelphia is not finding the win column as often as it did earlier in the season but at 15-19, the 76ers are on pace to win 36 games in the 2017-18 season. Philadelphia failed to carry the momentum from a Christmas Day win against the Knicks at MSG, as the 76ers fell for the 10th time in 12 games with a 114-110 loss at Portland on Thursday.. Philly is in Denver tonight to take on the 19-16 Nuggets. Denver has had some head-scratching losses this season but has also started playing better on the road. The Nuggets swept a two-game swing in Portland and Golden State just before Christmas and then took the Timberwolves to overtime in Minnesota, before losing 128-125 on Wednesday. The Nuggets are back home tonight where they are 12-3.

Philadelphia: "We just didn't capitalize," rookie PG Ben Simmons told reporters after his team squandered an 18-point lead Thursday night in Portland. "We didn't run our plays, didn't get stops, rebounds. It just came down to playing hard." While the 76ers are finding wins hard to come by lately, their young players continue to perform. Center Joel Embiid (24.0 & 11.0) followed up a 25-point effort at New York on Christmas with 29 points at Portland but is expected to be held out on Saturday with the 76ers facing a back-to-back (play at Phoenix on Sunday). Embiid's absence could leave more shots for Dario Saric (13.0 & 7.0), who went for 25 points on 10-of-12 shooting in Thursday's setback and is averaging 18 points over the last six games. Simmons (16.8-8.7-7.6) and Redick (16.8) form a high scoring backcourt plus SF Covington (14.3 & 5.9) is a unsung playerr.

Denver: The Nuggets got another offensive boost on Wednesday from reserve forward Trey Lyles, who collected 23 points and 10 rebounds in the win. It was his seventh straight game scoring in double figures, raising his average on teh season to. . Lyles finally got some help on the second unit from Will Barton (14.9-5.1-3.8), who scored 28 points in the loss after scoring in single figures in five of his previous seven games. Fans in Denver hoping to see a marquee matchup between Nikola Jokic and Embiid but will have to settle for just Jokic. The Serbian big man missed seven games in early December with a left ankle sprain and is averaging 18.3 points, 8.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists in the seven games since his return. He's averaging a double-double on teh season (16.2 & 10.1 and is already getting promoted for the Western Conference All-Star team by his coach.

The pick: Embiid is out and Covington (finger) left Thursday's game and is day-to-day. With "all hands on deck," Philly is a good offensive team but that won't be the case here. Sure, Denver allowed 71 first-half points (128 in OT) at Minnesota in its last game but in its previous three, the Nuggets held Portland, Golden St. and Utah to an average of just 83.0 PPG! Make the Under a 10* play.