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Nuggets open regular season with a rematch against Lakers – NBA.com
Denver’s title defense begins Tuesday.
There, they’ll host a familiar foe at Ball Arena, the Los Angeles Lakers. Both teams, of course, met up in the 2023 Western Conference Finals, and Denver promptly sent Los Angeles home in a four-game sweep.
Opening Night will begin with the Ring Night and Banner Raising ceremony, which you can read more about here. After that, the ball will be tipped and Denver’s 2023-24 season is officially underway.
There’s a lot to look forward to in the big rematch, but first, a look at the injury report.
INJURY REPORT
Los Angeles:
Jalen Hood-Schifino — OUT (Right Patella Contusion)
Jarred Vanderbilt — OUT (Left Heel Soreness)
Colin Castleton — OUT (G-League Assignment)
Alex Fudge — OUT (G-League Assignment)
D’Moi Hodge — OUT (G-League Assignment)
Denver:
Vlatko Čančar — OUT (Left Knee Surgery)
Jay Huff — OUT (Right Rib Fracture)
Michael Porter Jr. — PROBABLE (Left Ankle Sprain)
Los Angeles had a busy offseason, which we wrote about in the second edition of our offseason series, ‘Matchups.’ General manager Rob Pelinka revamped the Lakers’ roster across the board by bringing in newcomers Gabe Vincent, Christian Wood, Taurean Prince, Jaxxon Hayes, Cam Reddish, Jalen Hood-Schifino, and Maxwell Lewis.
Prince had an excellent preseason for the Lakers and hit 45.8 percent of his three-pointers in five games. Hayes was also a standout for Los Angeles as a play-finisher and connected on a ridiculous 85.7 percent of his shots. Overall, the Lakers went 2-4 in the preseason.
Matchups between the Lakers and Nuggets are always must-watch, besides the obvious caveats of existing playoff history and this being Opening Night. Nikola Jokić and Anthony Davis are two of the best big men in the NBA, but Jokić appeared extremely comfortable the last time these two stars saw each other in the Conference Finals. Jokić averaged 12.8 points and 6.3 assists on 54.1 shooting from the field and 55.6 percent from three when guarded by Davis in the series sweep.
On the flip side of things, Jokić did an excellent job defending Davis. Davis shot 47.3 percent versus Jokić in the Conference Finals, almost 5 percentage points lower than the 52 percent shooting he averaged for the rest of the postseason.
Los Angeles also had zero answers for Jamal Murray, who averaged a preparatous 32.5 points in the series on 52.7 percent from the field, 40.5 percent from three, and 95 percent from the free-throw line.
Finding a solution to Denver’s patented two-man game between Jokić and Murray, which looked even better in the postseason, will be paramount for Los Angeles in the season opener.
Julian Strawther is another name to watch on Denver’s side of things after averaging a team-high 17.8 points on 51.1 percent shooting, 45.2 percent from three, and 90 percent from the free-throw line in the preseason. The rookie, drafted 29th overall in this June’s draft, already appears to be a lights-out movement shooter that fits perfectly within Denver’s democratic offensive system. He’ll be looking to make a splash in his NBA debut on Tuesday.
Lastly, Michael Porter Jr. and Christian Braun are both worth keeping an eye on. Neither player participated in Denver’s preseason, and this will be their first taste of real-deal NBA basketball since playing in June’s NBA Finals.
Porter Jr. was nursing an ankle sprain, but he told reporters that he was good to go for the season opener. “I wouldn’t miss tomorrow for anything,” Porter Jr. said on Monday. Braun, meanwhile, missed time with a calf contusion.
Lastly, altitude could be a factor. Denver lost just one home game all postseason, and head coach Michael Malone repeatedly called the change in sea level an advantage. Not only is this the first game of the year for the Lakers, but they’re also forced to play about 4,975 feet higher than their home area of the Crypto.com Arena.
TUNE-IN: Tuesday 5:30 p.m. MT, TNT and 92.5FM
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