Nuggets' bench spoils LeBron's Laker debut in preseason opener

SAN DIEGO — Lights, camera, action! LeBron James’ long-awaited Laker debut had the intensity of a high-stakes playoff game, albeit for the cramped Valley View Casino Center it was played in. But James was quiet, playing just 15 minutes and finishing with nine points on 2-5 shooting.

James sat for most of the second half as the Nuggets and Lakers’ benches battled it out. Denver won its preseason opener over Los Angeles 124-107 in front of a small but loud crowd of 13,565 fans in San Diego mostly draped in yellow and gold.

The Nuggets played the first half of Sunday’s affair like a regular season matchup, and their starters showed well, except for the beginning of the third quarter, which the Lakers opened on an 11-1 run. Denver led  34-29 after the first quarter and 66-54 at halftime. Jamal Murray tallied 18 points on a clean 8-12 shooting in 19 minutes before exiting for good early in the third quarter. Murray came up grimacing after a dunk to begin the second half and hobbled off the floor. His left ankle had been bothering him throughout last week’s training camp.

Nikola Jokic had a strong showing as well, finishing with 14 points on 3-8 shooting. He hit all eight of his free-throw attempts.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone said prior to Sunday’s preseason opener that he wanted to play his starters around 20 minutes. Staying mostly true to his word, no starter played more than 25 minutes. Will Barton led Denver’s first five in minutes with 24.

After a 2017-18 season where Denver’s bench struggled at times to score the ball, the Nuggets’ reserves showed Sunday that they can keep up the pace on the offensive end of the floor. Denver’s bench was led by Juancho Hernangomez, who finished with 19 points on 6-11 shooting from the field and 5-8 from three, and Monte Morris, who tallied 12 points, six rebounds and four assists.

The Nuggets and Lakers play again Tuesday night at Staples Center in Los Angeles.