As the past month, Nikola Jokic (knee) remains out, but the Nuggets have been holding their own in The Joker's absence, standing 9-5 since he went down in Miami on December 29. Denver has had some other injuries in recent weeks, too, making the results the last month all the more impressive. Among those, only Anthony Gordon is likely to be out tonight, as Peyton Watson and Jamal Murray are both expected to play, and note G Deon Strawther pitched in with 20 points in Friday's win at Milwaukee. We usually don't like going against the Pistons but note their road games often aren't easy, with just one double-digit win (at the Lakers on December 30) in their last 13 away. Play Nuggets

DraftKings. Despite the brutal matchup on paper, this line is too low for Jonas Valanciunas, who commands a 27% usage rate without Nikola Jokic this season. As Denver will be without Aaron Gordon tonight, look for the Nuggets to play through their big man. Valanciunas is averaging 14 points per 22 minutes this season, and should see upside for more tonight, in his third game back from injury.

With Nikola Jokic, Aaron Gordon, Christian Braun and Cam Johnson still out, Peyton Watson is playing major minutes. He's averaging 36.3 minutes this month, leading to averages of 23.0 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists. He's shooting 48.4 percent from deep this month. Look for Denver to be very competitive against the favored Pistons, with Watson playing a big part in that.