Opening day for the National Basketball Association (NBA) began with the reigning champions Denver Nuggets playing against the Lakers. All Roads Lead to the Denver Nuggets winning the Larry O’Brien trophy for the 2022-23 season. From last year’s amazing playoff run that ended with Nikola Jokic hoisting up the Bill Russell Finals MVP trophy in front of Denver for the first time ever. Jokic and Jamal Murray endured tough opponents and were the underdogs in every matchup on the road to the playoffs. They endured the relentless Minnesota Timberwolves and a returning All-Star in Karl-Anthony Towns.
Anthony Edwards and Murray both gave their teams the much added boost outside of the battle of giants. After dominating the series 4-1, next stop in the Western Conference semi-finals were the Phoenix Suns. The Suns dominated round once against the Clippers lead by Devin Booker, Deandre Ayton, and new teammate Kevin Durant. The Suns fell short as the Nuggets prevailed in the series heading to their first Western Conference finals since 2009.w
Back-to-Back Championship Aspirations
The city of Denver will be being watched by the other 29 other associations in the NBA. The scenery has changed a lot from last season. The Boston Celtics have acquired Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis via trade, but their not the only ones. Giannis Antetokounmpo gains Damian Lillard from Portland, Bradley Beal joins the Suns for Chris Paul, and Jordan Poole leaves the Warriors for the Washington Wizards. The Memphis Grizzlies gains the Chicago Legend Derrick Rose and a former Defensive Player of the year DPOY in Marcus Smart.
All roads lead through the Nuggets to who will hoist up the Larry O’Brien Trophy. Jusef Nurkic replaces Ayton, sending him to the Trailblazers to help further develop the young core of Scoot Henderson and Anfernee Simons post-dame era. The new duo of Kyle Kuzma and Poole will lead the offense along with Tyus Jones in Washington.
Jokic and Murray Back to Business
Murray and Jokic are focused on facing the same team that they swept in the conference round the Lakers. The Lakers lead by LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and D’angelo Russell were defeated in the 2023-24 Opening Day contest.
The final score is 119-107 with Jokic ending with his first triple-double of the season. The Denver Nuggets are the prime contenders that lead directly to the next Larry O’Brien trophy.
Written By Semetrius Holmes
Sources:
Youtube: Denver Nuggets and Los Angeles Lakers
NBA League Pass: Lakers @ Nuggets
NBA: Everything you need to know about Nuggets Opening Night
Featured Image courtesy of Erik Drost’s Flickr Page Creative Commons License
Inset image courtesy of Al_HikesAZ’s Flickr Page Creative Commons License
