Denver, CO

Nikola Jokic leads Nuggets to win over Lakers in playoff opener

Published

7 months ago

April 21, 2024

Nikola Jokic leads Nuggets to win over Lakers in playoff opener

DENVER (AP) — Nikola Jokic had 32 points and 12 rebounds, and the defending NBA champion Denver Nuggets powered past LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers 114-103 in their Western Conference playoff opener Saturday night.

Two other Nuggets players posted double-doubles, Jamal Murray (22 points, 10 assists) and Aaron Gordon (12 points, 11 rebounds) and Michael Porter Jr. came close with 19 points and eight boards.

James had 27 points for L.A. and Anthony Davis had 32 points and 14 rebounds, but the Lakers lost to the Nuggets for the ninth consecutive time and Denver handed James just his fourth loss in 17 first-round openers.

Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, who scored all 12 of his points after halftime, made a trio of 3-pointers in a 13-0 run the Nuggets used to seize control in the third quarter.

Porter excelled on the court, as coach Michael Malone predicted he would, after a trying week for his family that saw one younger brother, Coban Porter, sentenced to six years in jail for a fatal drunken driving crash on Friday and another, former Toronto Raptors guard Jontay Porter, banned from the NBA for betting on basketball and disclosing confidential information to other bettors.

“There’s so much going on off the court for Michal Porter Jr. and his family,” Malone said. “This allows him to get back to doing something not only that he loves but also that he does very, very well.”

The Nuggets entered these playoffs with bullseyes on their backs but supremely confident of their chances to repeat after tying a franchise record with 57 regular season wins, four more than last year.

One sign of their looseness, Jokic, who’s starring in a teaser for “Despicable Me 4” where he seeks therapy because the Minions think he’s their boss, arrived at Ball Arena decked out in a black-and-gray striped scarf and gray pants, looking like Felonius Gru, the lead character from the movie franchise.

James should have shown up dressed like Vector because he played the perfect villain for the sold-out crowd that drowned out the Lakers’ pregame introductions.

James ended a terrific first half in which he scored 19 points with a 32-foot 3-pointer to break a 57-all tie after the Lakers had blown a 12-point lead.

Denver’s 13-0 run in the third quarter threatened to make it a laugher as the Nuggets stretched their lead to 15 in the fourth quarter. But James made two free throws, Davis had a three-point play and Taurean Prince made a basket to cut the Lakers’ deficit to 96-88 with 7:17 remaining.

The closest they got to the Nuggets, though, was at 103-96 before Porter hit a 3 and Jokic had a dunk off a turnover by James to push Denver’s lead to 12.

The Nuggets are seeking to become the first team to successfully defend its NBA title since the Golden State Warriors did it in 2018.

Denver swept the Lakers in last season’s Western Conference finals, the next-to-last step the Nuggets had to clear before claiming their first NBA title.

The Lakers haven’t beaten the Nuggets since Dec. 16, 2022. They’ll try again Monday night in Game 2 at Ball Arena, where Denver is now 34-8 this season.

James lost for just the 18th time in 80 first-round games. He lost a playoff opener for third time in his six seasons with the Lakers, and fourth overall. His team also lost series openers in Round 1 in 2018 (Indiana over Cleveland), 2020 (Portland over the Lakers) and 2021 (Phoenix over the Lakers).

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Denver, CO

Rand Paul Warns Denver Mayor on Deportations

Published

7 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

Rand Paul Warns Denver Mayor on Deportations

Rand Paul on Sunday issued a warning to the mayor of Denver: Don’t try to foil the coming Trump administration’s plans for mass deportations of undocumented migrants. On Face the Nation, the Kentucky senator referenced Mayor Mike Johnston’s suggestion that police and city residents would block federal efforts to deport people, per the Hill. The mayor is “on the wrong side of history” and would pay the consequences, he warned. “I would suspect that he would be removed from office.”

“I don’t know whether or not that would be a criminal prosecution for someone resisting federal law,” Paul added. “But he will lose. And people need to realize that what he is offering is a form of insurrection where the states resist the federal government.”

Paul’s comments come after the mayor told Denverite that it wouldn’t work to mobilize the National Guard to round up migrants in the city:

“More than us having (Denver police) stationed at the county line to keep them out, you would have 50,000 Denverites there,” Johnston said. “It’s like the Tiananmen Square moment with the rose and the gun, right? You’d have every one of those Highland moms who came out for the migrants. And you do not want to mess with them.”

Denver is a self-described “sanctuary city” that has seen an influx of 41,000 migrants over the past two years, per Colorado Politics. It’s not clear exactly how the Trump administration’s plan would play out, but incoming “border czar” Tom Homan has promised deportations on a historic scale, starting with criminals first. (More Denver stories.)

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Denver, CO

Denver area events for Nov. 25: Pop-up holiday lounge at Union Station and more

Published

15 hours ago

November 25, 2024

Press Room

Denver area events for Nov. 25: Pop-up holiday lounge at Union Station and more

If you have an event taking place in the Denver area, email information to carlotta.olson@gazette.com at least two weeks in advance. All events are listed in the calendar on space availability.

Monday

Sipping N’ Painting Hampden — “Alaska Night,” 6:30-8:30 p.m., Sipping N’ Painting Hampden, 6461 E. Hampden Ave., Denver, $35. Registration required: sippingnpaintinghampden.com.

Brazilian Zouk Classes and Social Dance — 7-11:30 p.m., Mercury Café, 2199 California St., Denver, $20 class and social, $15 social only; mercurycafe.com.

Cloud Nothings — With Armlock, Famers Wife, 8 p.m., Bluebird Theater, 3317 E. Colfax Ave., Denver, $25. Tickets: axs.com.

Mile High Holidays Drone Show — 7 p.m. through Dec. 31, Denver skies; denver.org/milehighholidays.

“American Dreams” Exhibit — Through Dec. 31, Molly Brown House Museum, 1340 Pennsylvania St., Denver, go online for prices. Tickets: mollybrown.org.

“Shadow and Light: Patrick Marold” — Through Jan. 5, Denver Botanic Gardens, 1007 York St., Denver, go online for prices; botanicgardens.org.

“Vanity & Vice: American Art Deco” — Through Jan. 12, Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art, 1201 Bannock St., Denver. Go online for prices. Tickets: kirklandmuseum.org.

“Dawoud Bey: Street Portraits” — Through May 11, Denver Art Museum, 100 W. 14th Ave. Parkway, Denver, go online for prices: denverartmuseum.org.

Monday-Dec. 28

Miracle at Union Station: Buddy’s Bar — Pop-up cocktail lounge featuring holiday décor, cocktails and a designated Hanukkah table, 4-p.m.-midnight, Galley Bar on lower level, Union Station, 1701 Wynkoop St., Denver. Reservations: denverunionstation.com.

Monday-Dec. 30

Free Downtown Trolley Rides — See the downtown Castle Rock decorations, 5-7 p.m. Mondays-Tuesdays, no rides Dec. 24, pickup/drop-off points Encore Garage Entrance on South Street between Wilcox and Perry Street and Douglas County School District Parking Lot Entrance on 6th Street Wilcox and Perry Street, Castle Rock; crgov.com/2622/season-of-the-star.

CARLOTTA OLSON, The Denver Gazette

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Denver, CO

PHOTOS: Denver Broncos beat Las Vegas Raiders, 29-19, in NFL Week 12

Published

23 hours ago

November 24, 2024

Press Room

PHOTOS: Denver Broncos beat Las Vegas Raiders, 29-19, in NFL Week 12

Wide receiver Courtland Sutton (14) of the Denver Broncos celebrates after the fourth quarter of the Broncos’ 29-19 win over the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada on Sunday, Nov. 24, 2024. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)