Denver Nuggets drop first preseason game to the Los Angeles Lakers
By Andrew Dill
Oct 6, 2014; San Diego, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (24) is defended by Denver Nuggets guard Arron Afflalo (10) during the second half at Valley View Casino Center. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
It wasn’t pretty Monday night as the Denver Nuggets fell to the Los Angeles Lakers in their preseason debut, but keep in mind Denver was without Danilo Gallinari, Nate Robinson, JaVale McGee, and J.J Hickson as the team elected to sit their four players who sat out with season-ending injuries last season. Denver went on to fall to the Lakers by the final score of 98-95. But hey, it’s the preseason.
One thing is for sure, Kobe Bryant is still Kobe Bryant. The 19-year veteran showed off his flashy moves early and often Monday night, finishing the game with 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting, playing in just 21 minutes of action. His counterpart, Arron Afflalo, made his return for Denver, scoring 10 points on 2-of-5 shooting, making all five of his free-throws.
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After coming off his five-year, $60 million extension Sunday night, Kenneth Faried made little to no impact; except going 6-for-8 from the charity stripe. Faried finished the game shooting 0-for-4 fromt he field, collecting just one rebound to go with six points. Ty Lawson, who predicted the Nuggets’ would finish top-four in the West, scored a team-high 14 points, collecting 6 assists and 2 rebounds in the loss.
Although Jusuf Nurkic didn’t have a very successful debut, shooting 1-for-8 from the field with just two points, he was very active on both the offensive and defensive glass. In 20 minutes of play, Nurkic hauled down nine rebounds; 5 offensive and 4 defensive. Another rookie Denver selected in the first-round, Gary Harris, made quite the impression. Harris knocked down 2-of-3 attempts from three, finishing with 11 points in 19 minutes of play.
Denver couldn’t contain Lakers’ forward Jordan Hill who scoring 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting, bringing down 11 total rebounds and one assist. Jordan Clarkson, who was a second-round draft choice, scored a team-high 14 points for Los Angeles, finishing a perfect 6-for-6 from the line.
Notable Nuggets’ Stats:
- Timofey Mozgov (DEN): 13 points (5-of-8), 3 rebounds, 1 assist.
- Erick Green (DEN): 11 points (3-of-5), 2 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal.
- Quincy Miller (DEN): 10 points (3-of-5), 2 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal.
The Denver Nuggets resume preseason action Wednesday night as they take on the Oklahoma City Thunder at the Pepsi Center. Tip-off is scheduled for 9:00 PM EST, 7:00 PM MST.