The Los Angeles Lakers had a night to forget after getting blown out by the Denver Nuggets, 133-96.
Denver finished the first quarter with a five-point lead at 34-29, but that’s when it started going south for Los Angeles. The Lakers just couldn’t stop the Nuggets at any point on the defensive end. If Denver had a 3-point look, it went in. If Denver wanted to attack the rim, it was an open layup line.
Denver’s rookie Bones Hyland popped off in the first half and Nikola Jokic turned in a 17-point, 13-assist, 12-rebound triple-double, but everyone on the Nuggets had the hot hand. The Nuggets shot a whopping 57.5% from deep on 40 attempts, while the Lakers hit just 10-of-30 (30%).
The Lakers, on the other hand, got a solid game from Dwight Howard, but that was it.
Here is how the Lakers, now 21-22 on the season, graded individually from the loss: