Justin Tafoya/Getty ImagesĪfter his traditional summer, comprised of returning to his homeland of Serbia and watching horse racing, Jokić was his unguardable self, spraying passes all over the court and hitting shots from tough angles. James dribbles the ball up the court in the first half against the Nuggets. In what was a rematch of the Western Conference Finals last season, the reigning NBA champions looked like they hadn’t missed a beat, in particular on offense. The other side has each player’s name and number with the team’s mantra “BRING IT ON,” while “5280” is written on the top and bottom of the face of the ring to represent Denver’s altitude above sea level. Above that, there’s a single row of 15 stones to signify the 15 playoff games played at Ball Arena last season. On one side, there are the words “WORLD CHAMPIONS” with the Denver Nuggets retro logo and the team’s regular season record. Surrounding the perimeter of the ring top were 89 points of red rubies, referencing the amount of points the Nuggets held the Miami Heat to in the championship-clinching Game 5 victory. The word ‘Nuggets’ is written on the front of the ring in 24 points of yellow diamonds to represent the 24 years at Ball Arena. The ring features 16 carats of diamonds, rubies and blue sapphires to represent the Nuggets’ colors, as well as the 16 postseason wins that it took to win the NBA championship. The bespoke rings which the players received had a number of elements to immortalize the organization’s first-ever NBA title. It was a special evening for the Nuggets, as the players received their championship rings and their title banner was raised to the rafters of the arena in a commemorative ceremony in front of the home crowd ahead of the season-opener. Who wants another?” Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said during the team’s ring ceremony. Two-time NBA MVP Jokić finished with a triple-double – 29 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists – as the Nuggets won 119-107 at Ball Arena in Colorado.Īll-time top scorer LeBron James led the way for Los Angeles with 21 points in just 29 minutes on the floor.īut it was the defending NBA champion which got its season off to the perfect start, with clear aspirations of repeat success. The 7-footer from Finland made his first All-Star team.Nikola Jokić led the Denver Nuggets to a victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on opening night of the 2023-24 season as the NBA champions began their campaign to secure a second successive ring. The Jazz march to the beat of Markkanen, who’s coming off a season in which he averaged 25.6 points and 8.6 rebounds. George is playing his way into the starting lineup, especially after stellar performances in Salt Lake City and Las Vegas during summer league action. They have a young coach in Will Hardy who’s trying to mesh it all together. The Jazz drafted three young players in the first round over the summer - Taylor Hendricks (No. The versatile 7-foot-1 forward/center missed last season with a foot injury. Now, Oklahoma City adds Holmgren, the No. Jalen Williams was runner-up for rookie of the year last season and Lu Dort returns as the team’s defensive stopper. 2 scorer last season, is back after averaging 19.4 points for Australia at the World Cup. Gilgeous-Alexander was a first-team All-NBA selection last season after averaging 31.4 points per game. Gilgeous-Alexander leads a talented young core that is worth watching after the Thunder reached the Play-In Tournament last season. Forward Jaden McDaniels, who missed the first-round series loss to the Nuggets with a broken hand, will be counted on to advance his production after establishing himself as the team’s ace defender. After losing Towns for the bulk of the season to a strained calf muscle, Minnesota is running it back with the two big men complementing Edwards on almost entirely the same roster as last season. national team and forge a stronger pick-and-roll connection with Gobert. Part of the next wave of potential superstars in the NBA to receive maximum contract extensions during the offseason, Edwards will be trying to build off a strong summer performance with the U.S. Edwards, the first overall pick in the 2020 draft, has become the clear top dog for the Timberwolves.
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