A big part of handicapping in the NBA is tracking scheduling spots, and this one for Denver on Friday is favorable. The Nuggets will be in the midst of a four-game homestand, and sitting on three days of rest when the Thunder come to town.

For Oklahoma City, this will be the front end of a back-to-back with the Clippers on deck the next night, and Friday’s game comes after a trip to New Orleans. The Thunder have been fine on the road this season, going 7-6 against the number, but had a three-game road trip last week in which they barely beat the Nets and lost to the Bulls.

Denver, as is usually the case, has been a fantastic team at home, posting a 10-3 record straight up and a 9-4 against-the-spread record thus far this season.

In addition, the Nuggets are 3-1 against the number this season after two or more days of rest.

However, one thing that could hold the Nuggets back, not only in this contest, but for the foreseeable future, will be the absence of Paul Millsap. Denver already lost Gary Harris for three-to-four weeks with a hip injury, and now Millsap is expected to miss at least a month with a broken toe. The Nuggets rank fifth in the league in defensive efficiency and Millsap is a huge reason. His absence could be why Denver can’t take advantage of a friendly scheduling spot on Friday.

The play: Thunder, -2.