Indiana–Washington brings distributed passing up against powerful interior finishing and second chances. Memphis–Denver turns on how a changing center rotation handles a scorer who also directs the next pass. In both matches, the useful distinction is between creating an opening and repeatedly getting a teammate to finish it.
Indiana has a working sequence from Nembhard through Siakam to Zubac inside or Nesmith outside. Carlisle described Siakam finding good looks after Dallas brought extra attention, and Jackson added passing alongside a productive reserve group. Washington has genuine force through Young and Davis, but Davis's big Detroit performance came with thin supporting scoring and frequent lost possessions.
Haliburton remains out and McConnell is questionable after a short, restricted appearance. Indiana's case rests on the Nembhard–Siakam connection and the reserve receivers already doing the work. I expect those options to matter through the middle quarters as Washington concentrates attention on the interior. That's why I'm siding with the Indiana Pacers to win.
Denver can keep moving the point of attack through Jokic and Murray, asking Edey to defend both the initial action and the space behind it. Memphis has its own connected offense through Jerome and Boozer, whose scoring and passing against Toronto were substantial. The tougher task here is sustaining that offense while repeatedly covering Denver's interior actions.
Post is out after his early Toronto exit, while Stewart remains questionable following missed games. That leaves a demanding sequence across Edey's playing and rest stretches, even allowing useful Stewart participation. Denver's repeated inside touches and passing give it the stronger route through those stretches, so I'm siding with the Denver Nuggets to win.
