<div align="center">@ <font color="Cyan">The Denver Nuggets (0-0)</font>@<font color="Purple">The Los Angeles Lakers (0-0)</font> Time: 10:30 PM EST, 7:30 PM PAC Place: The Staples Center TV: Local, TNT</div> Projected Starting Lineups Andre Miller/Chucky Atkins Voshon Lenard/Kobe Bryant Carmelo Anthony/Caron Butler Kenyon Martin/Lamar Odom Marcus Camby/Chris Mihm Key Bench Players Nene/Kareem Rush Injury Report Denver- Francisco Elson: Foot: Questionable Nikoloz Tskitishvili: Hamstring: Questionable Los Angeles- Vlade Divac: Back: Doubtful Devean George: Ankle: Out <div align="center">New Faces (Key Matchup) Kenyon Martin/Lamar Odom These two players, both coming over from the East, have something to prove. Kenyon has to prove that he can play without Jason Kidd and has to prove he was worth is lucrative contract. Odom has to prove that he can play in LA, he fizzled with the Clippers but blossomed with the Heat, can he avoid the pressure's of L.A. life once again? Kmart is much bigger than the tall, skinny Odom. He needs to bang him down low, while Odom needs to take Kmart out of his comfort zone, and play the perimeter. This should be a good matchup with both players trying to establish a rank on their new team.</div> <div align="center">Key Players Carmelo Anthony- Carmelo is coming off of a rough summer. He had poor outings in the summer, got in a scuffle in a bar, and to top it off was arrested on possesion of marijuana. He was portrayed as immature in the summer and he needs to flip that around. He is the leader of this Denver team, its on his shoulders, not Kmarts. He needs to prove that he can lead a team and not let a so-called "Sophomore Slump" hit him. I look for big things from him this season, seeing as last year he felt he should of been an allstar...its time for him to pencil in his name as the team leader. Kobe Bryant- Coming off of one of the most nerve wrecking offseasons ever for any player, Kobe is a free man. The team is his to lead, he got the gargantuan contract he wanted, he has bulked up, and he has gotten the rape allegations off of his mind. This is Kobe's team. Kobe will look to make a statement in game 1 of the regular season, however..not necessarily a scoring statement. I think he will come out passing the ball, showing that he can play with teammates and share the ball. I am looking for him to show maturity and leadership skills out on the court. Lets go Kobe!</div> Keys to the Game <font color="cyan">Denver-</font> <ul> [*]Team D [*]Strong Bench Play [*]RUN, RUN, RUN [/list] The Nuggets were the best fast breaking team in the NBA last year, with Kenyon Martin now there, that will only improve. Andre Miller is an established point guard who can execute the fast break, he should be able to beat Atkins. The Nuggets bench, outside of Nene, is fairly weak. They are going to need their bench to step up and give them some strong minutes at the end of quarters and halfs, they cant let the Lakers win the game that way. The Nuggets should play some strong D, especially in the post with Camby grabbing boards and Kmart's presence there. They need to free up Sharp shooter Voshon Lenard on the perimeter and hope his shot is on, and let Carmelo drive against Caron <font color="purple"> Los Angeles-</font> <ul> [*]Transition D [*]Team play [*]New Faces [/list] The Lakers were weak in transition last year, that Should be improved this year with Odom and Butler in the mix. The Lakers must click on all faces of the game, they are not last years team, they cant go to Shaq when they are in trouble. Kobe must take lead of this team and bail them out when they struggle. Odom needs to grab boards and must be efficient on the offensive end, he has to pull Kmart from under the basket. Caron needs to play solid D, he normally does, but he is going up against Carmelo, the Nuggets main man. It should be a good matchup and I expect Caron to play him good. I think the biggest thing for the Lakers though are the fresh faces. Odom, Caron, Grant, Mihm, and Atkins. They will all see significant time and they must produce. Kobe 8 Ball's Prediction I think this Laker team is being overlooked, I think they are actually better than last year's team. We now have a team that can run the court and get back on D. I think L.A. will come out strong and show the rest of the NBA that they can hang with the Western Conference. I take L.A. by 7 in this one, it should be an exciting game and an exciting start to the 2004-2005 Laker's Schedule...LETS GO LAKESHOW
Great Analysists. One problem, I do believe there playing in Denver not in L.A. Kobe needs to create the plat and find the open guy, Lamar needs to play a great outside game and Mihm needs to work on helping out on K-Mart if Odom is caught overpowered inside. In my opinion going to be a good game, but just due to more experience in Kobe, I think the Lakers pull this one out with a 6 points lead.
The new look Lakers will struggle in the first game against the somewhat revamped Nuggets. It will be tight but I believe the Nuggets will still pull through, especially if it is in Denver. If it is in L.A (which I'm not sure, since one person said it's in Denver and another said it will be in L.A), then the Lakers will come out more fierecely as with any team on opening day but I still believe the Nuggets have the upper hand either way. Nuggets by 6.
Nice preview. On the inside, the Nuggets have a big advantage over LA, but nobody on Denver's team can guard Kobe. I hope the Lakers take advantage of that and try their best to get Kobe the ball everytime. Odom's outside game has to be on in order to draw KMart away from the basket so that Kobe can have the space to drive.
Great preview, I think the Lakers will win. They'll most likley be dominated in the inside by Kmart, Camby, and Nene. Caron will play some geat defense on Carmello, and Denver won't be able to guard Kobe who wants to come out and show Laker fans/Laker haters that the Lakers can win without Shaq. Plus it's Voshon Lenard who will be covering him. Lakers by 3.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Trip:</div><div class="quote_post">Odom's outside game has to be on in order to draw KMart away from the basket so that Kobe can have the space to drive.</div> Key to the Lakers' win...exactly...but also to keep him away from defensive boards.
Nuggets should win this win at least by four points. K Mart is kind of quick he should be able to keep up with Odom and dominate him in the paint. The Lakers dont have a real shooter on the perimeter so doubling Kobe wont result in any serious backlash. McGrady got doubled plenty last season, Marbury was doubled in the postseason against the Nets. Kobe will get doubled everytime he touches the ball and since the Lakers dont have any response to that they will keep on doubling him. Kobe will get shut down and Denver dominates the paint not to mention the fast break points the Nuggets will get. The Lakers are not better than last year and they wont win the Pacific. It's either the Kings or the Suns.
Just something everyone should think about before this game is played... The Lakers, without Shaq and Kobe, beat the Nuggets last year, with the score of 97-71. C - Horace Grant PF - Slava Medvedenko SF - Devean George SG - Kareem Rush PG - Gary Payton DEFEATED C - Marcus Camby PF - Nene SF - Carmelo Anthony SG - Voshon Lenard PG - Andre Miller So...add Kenyon Martin to the Nuggets ...and add Kobe Bryant, Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, Chris Mihm, Jumaine Jones, Tierre Brown, Chucky Atkins, Sasha Vujacic, and Vlade Divac to the Lakers...you get the picture. Subtract Gary Payton, and it shows that the Nuggets won't blow past the Lakers like everyone believes. The point is...team chemistry means alot more than having Melo, Martin, and Miller on your team. The guys assuming that we'll lose are saying that because of the star-studded lineup that the Nuggets have, but in reality, it doesn't make much of a difference. It's ok to say that we'll lose, but not for ignorant reasons.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting realdealbneal:</div><div class="quote_post">Just something everyone should think about before this game is played... The Lakers, without Shaq and Kobe, beat the Nuggets last year, with the score of 97-71. C - Horace Grant PF - Slava Medvedenko SF - Devean George SG - Kareem Rush PG - Gary Payton DEFEATED C - Marcus Camby PF - Nene SF - Carmelo Anthony SG - Voshon Lenard PG - Andre Miller So...add Kenyon Martin to the Nuggets ...and add Kobe Bryant, Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, Chris Mihm, Jumaine Jones, Tierre Brown, Chucky Atkins, Sasha Vujacic, and Vlade Divac to the Lakers...you get the picture. Subtract Gary Payton, and it shows that the Nuggets won't blow past the Lakers like everyone believes.</div> Lol, come on man, you know the Nuggets were just plain terrible and came out sluggish that game. They took the Lakers TOO lightly, and the they took advantage. You know that won't happen again.
No, that's not the point. The point is...team chemistry means alot more than having Melo, Martin, and Miller on your team. The guys assuming that we'll lose are saying that because of the star-studded lineup that the Nuggets have, but in reality, it doesn't make much of a difference. It's ok to say that we'll lose, but not for ignorant reasons.
Your think that the Lakers who have a completely different look and strategy have more chemistry than the Nuggets who have played with each other a full season already and added Kenyon Martin who will be playing the exact same kind of running game he played in Jersey?
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Tribute to H2O:</div><div class="quote_post">Your think that the Lakers who have a completely different look and strategy have more chemistry than the Nuggets who have played with each other a full season already and added Kenyon Martin who will be playing the exact same kind of running game he played in Jersey?</div> Don't be too quick to assume that Melo/K-Mart will connect just like that. It's very possible that the Nuggets will win...I'm not saying that it isn't...but the reasons I've been given, or that I've heard (esp. from ESPN), aren't very good ones. Now, team chemistry...yes, that's a good reason for the Lakers not to win. However, it's very possible that the Lakers have more chemistry than the Nuggets, and vice versa. How did Rasheed drop in on the Pistons and suddenly ride them into the Finals? I doubt the Pistons would've won the championship without him...they barely survived the Pacers. The Lakers are a new team...revamped, actually...but that doesn't mean that they'll lose...and neither does the fact that they lost Shaq and Payton. That's all I'm getting to. :thumbsup:
if the lakers play some really excellent team bball then they could definitely win by atleast 10. the nuggets own every position except the SG position so they have a major advantage. if the lakers can find a way to stop their big men then they will lose but if they can shoot a high FG percentage then that will be their ticket to winning this season opener :thumbsup:
How do the Lakers have a major advantage when they only have an advantage in one position? Like I said double up on Kobe and there wont be no worries. All the Lakers have to do to win is stop the Nuggets big men from demolishing the Lakers front line and shoot a high percentage...Yanix you make it sound so easy. As it stands now the Nuggets have more chemistry than the Lakers. And are better at just about every position except the shooting guard position which isnt a big deal since all they have to do is mob Kobe. Dont see how the Lakers can win. The Nuggets will win by 8 pts.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Tribute to H2O:</div><div class="quote_post">How do the Lakers have a major advantage when they only have an advantage in one position? Like I said double up on Kobe and there wont be no worries. All the Lakers have to do to win is stop the Nuggets big men from demolishing the Lakers front line and shoot a high percentage...Yanix you make it sound so easy. As it stands now the Nuggets have more chemistry than the Lakers. And are better at just about every position except the shooting guard position which isnt a big deal since all they have to do is mob Kobe. Dont see how the Lakers can win. The Nuggets will win by 8 pts.</div> Okay, quick question...who's going to double Kobe? Put Melo and Voshon on him, and you leave open Butler or Odom. Not a good idea. Last year, it was different because the Lakers ran the triangle. Double-teaming Kobe was effective because the ball ran through him. This year, it's not the triangle, and there are other scoring options other than Kobe and Shaq. Butler scored 18 in the first quarter earlier, so he's capable of scoring...Odom is...and Tierre Brown is a slasher... With all due respect, I believe that although some Laker fans can make it sound easy, you're making it sound impossible.
I'm just saying without an outside threat(shooter) doubling up on Kobe will be very effective. Havent you seen what happened to Marbury and McGrady(there are others but I cant remember them off the top of my head)? Or even the Olympics when the other countries played a zone defense? Someone will have to take a long jumpshot when Kobe is doubled and the Lakers dont have any real three point shooters.
<div class="quote_poster">Quoting Tribute to H2O:</div><div class="quote_post">I'm just saying without an outside threat(shooter) doubling up on Kobe will be very effective. Havent you seen what happened to Marbury and McGrady(there are others but I cant remember them off the top of my head)? Or even the Olympics when the other countries played a zone defense? Someone will have to take a long jumpshot when Kobe is doubled and the Lakers dont have any real three point shooters.</div> Well, I can't argue that it won't be effective...but it's not necessary. As long as Odom and Butler (and Brown/Atkins) can play off the ball effectively, while it's in Kobe's hands, Bryant will find a man to kick it back out to when he's double-teamed. They don't necessarily have to take a three...and Kobe doesn't have to hold the ball that long to force a three, either. If you play away from Odom, once he gets the ball, you're already off a step and he'll take you to the hoop...so Odom HAS to be guarded...and that goes for Butler also. More options CAN be much better than two options. Devean George wasn't a three point threat...he was inconsistent...and we all know that Malone and Payton couldn't shoot the three, also, yet they got into the Finals last year. What did the Lakers lose? Payton and Shaq...not any "three point threats"...so obviously, they didn't need them last year. Poor off-the-ball play was our problem, and it was exposed in the Finals.
