Los Angeles Lakers (36-24, sixth in the Western Conference) vs. Denver Nuggets (38-24, fifth in the Western Conference)
Denver; Thursday, 10 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Denver faces the Los Angeles Lakers after Jamal Murray scored 45 points in the Denver Nuggets’ 128-125 win over the Utah Jazz.
The Nuggets are 22-13 against conference opponents. Denver is sixth in the NBA with 33.5 defensive rebounds per game led by Nikola Jokic averaging 9.5.
The Lakers have gone 25-15 against Western Conference opponents. Los Angeles is 6-2 in games decided by 3 points or fewer.
The Nuggets are shooting 49.3% from the field this season, 0.8 percentage points higher than the 48.5% the Lakers allow to opponents. The Lakers average 115.9 points per game, 0.2 fewer than the 116.1 the Nuggets allow.
The teams square off for the second time this season. The Lakers won 115-107 in the last meeting on Jan. 21. Luka Doncic led the Lakers with 38 points, and Murray led the Nuggets with 28 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jokic is averaging 28.7 points, 12.6 rebounds and 10.3 assists for the Nuggets. Murray is averaging 24.5 points over the last 10 games.
Doncic is averaging 32.5 points, 7.7 rebounds and 8.6 assists for the Lakers. LeBron James is averaging 1.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Nuggets: 5-5, averaging 122.3 points, 46.9 rebounds, 28.7 assists, 7.1 steals and 3.3 blocks per game while shooting 48.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 115.4 points per game.
Lakers: 5-5, averaging 113.7 points, 38.9 rebounds, 26.8 assists, 7.9 steals and 5.0 blocks per game while shooting 49.8% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 111.9 points.
INJURIES: Nuggets: Tamar Bates: out (foot), Aaron Gordon: out (hamstring), Peyton Watson: out (hamstring), Cameron Johnson: day to day (ankle), Spencer Jones: day to day (shoulder).
Lakers: None listed.
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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