Overview

• The Denver Nuggets began the 2023-24 season by defending their first championship successfully with a 119-107 win against the Los Angeles Lakers, led by MVP Nikola Jokic who initiated the season with a 29-point, 13-rebound, 11-assist triple-double.
• Jokic has averaged 19.6 points, 10.4 rebounds, and 5.6 assists in his 26 previous matches with the Grizzlies, recording triple-doubles in two of Denver's wins in the last season.
• All Nuggets' starting five scored in double figures in their season opener, Jamal Murray and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope both scoring over 20 points, along with a double-double from Michael Porter Jr.
• Three of the Grizzlies' key players Dillon Brooks, Ja Morant, and Steven Adams will be unavailable for the match; Brooks was traded to Houston, Morant is serving a 25-game suspension, and Adams is undergoing season-ending knee surgery.
• In the Grizzlies' season-opening loss to New Orleans, they struggled with 3-point shooting, a recurring issue they had last season being ranked No. 23 in the NBA - aside from Desmond Bane's 5-of-10 who scored a total of 31 points.