Getty Donovan Mitchell and Michael Porter Jr.
The NBA Playoffs have officially arrived and the first postseason tilt pits the No.3 seed Denver Nuggets against the No. 6 seeded Utah Jazz in a Western Conference clash.
Game 1 starts at 1:30 p.m. ET and will be televised on ESPN. But if you don’t have cable, here’s how to watch a live stream of the game online:
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Watch ESPN on FuboTV
As of August 1, ESPN is one of the 107 live TV channels included in the main FuboTV bundle, which comes with a free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for FuboTV, you can watch ESPN and the Jazz vs Nuggets live on your computer via the FuboTV website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, or other supported device via the FuboTV app.
If you can’t watch live, FuboTV comes with 30 hours of cloud DVR space, as well as a 72-hour look-back feature, which allows you to watch the game on-demand within three days of its conclusion, even if you don’t record it.
Watch ESPN on Sling TV
ESPN is one of 31 channels included in the Sling Orange package. It costs $20 for the first month and $30 per month after that. If you want the cheapest way to watch as much NBA playoff basketball as possible, this is the preferred option, as it also includes TNT (Sling Orange) and NBA TV (Sling Orange plus Sports Extra add-on):
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch ESPN and the Jazz vs Nuggets live on your computer via the Sling TV website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, or other streaming device via the Sling TV app.
If you can’t watch live, Sling TV comes included with 10 hours of cloud DVR.
Watch ESPN on Vidgo
ESPN is one of 68 total channels included with Vidgo. This is the cheapest long-term option with ESPN, and it comes with a free seven-day trial:
Once signed up for Vidgo, you can then watch ESPN and the Jazz vs Nuggets live on your computer via the Vidgo website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV or other compatible streaming device via the Vidgo app.
Watch ESPN on Hulu With Live TV
ESPN is included in Hulu With Live TV, which comes with 60-plus live TV channels and Hulu’s extensive on-demand library of TV shows and movies. You can watch immediately with a seven-day free trial:
Once signed up for Hulu With Live TV, you can watch ESPN and the Jazz vs Nuggets live on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Echo Show, or other streaming device via the Hulu app.
If you can’t watch live, Hulu with Live TV comes with both its extensive on-demand library and 50 hours of Cloud DVR storage (with the ability to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of DVR space and the ability to fast forward through commercials).
Jazz vs Nuggets Game 1 Preview
The Nuggets should be rested and ready for their first-round matchup against the Jazz, having rested their starters down the stretch in the seeding games. Last season’s playoff run broke a five-year postseason drought for Denver. Both of the team’s series went seven games, beating the Spurs in the first-round and then getting bounced by the Blazers in Game 7 of the Conference Semifinals. The adversity taught the team’s stars, like Nikola Jokic, what the postseason is like with things turned up a notch.
“It’s every possession matters,” Jokic said. “You cannot have three, four times-in-a-row possessions that you kind of dribble the ball or just (have) empty possessions. Or you cannot have a lot of turnovers in a row because basketball is a game of runs, so you need to use the opportunity that you have and not kind of (start) forcing things.”
The Jazz will be shorthanded for the start of the series, with starting guard Mike Conley leaving the bubble to be with his family for the birth of his child. Conley had been clear from the beginning that he was going to leave for the life-changing event.
“Yeah, it was tough. I’m gonna be in a bubble, but yet if I leave to go see my baby born, I’m gonna be quarantined on the way back in, and possibly have to miss a game or whatever the situation is that we’ll currently be in,” he told the Salt Lake Tribune in early July. “There’s just a lot of things that go into play.”
Conley will have to adhere to at least a four-day quarantine upon returning. He averaged 14.4 points, 4.4 assists and 3.2 rebounds this season. The team was already missing Bogdan Bogdanovic, who’s out for the season with a wrist injury, and backup forward Ed Davis, who’s dealing with a knee injury.
“As a staff, we’ve had the opportunity to coach guys that will let you coach them, and really, we learn from each other,” Jazz coach Quinn Snyder said on Saturday. “So when we say we’re evolving and molding to fit — be it our personnel or things we’ve learned about how we how we play, what we want to do better, what we want to do more of — we’ve had a group that’s really receptive. And you’re lucky as a coach to have that. They embrace what we give them, and sometimes they modify what we give them — which is great — and make it better.”
The matchup to watch will be between Jokic and Jazz big man Rudy Gobert, a perennial Defensive Player of the Year contender. Jokic is one of the most unique talents in the NBA, but he’ll be tested with Gobert on his tail. The Nuggets are a 4.5-point favorite for the game, with the total set at 215.5.