LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers have been given attention by NBA fans after news broke out that they would be headlining the 2023-2024 NBA season opener. As many of us might be aware, King James will be entering Year 21 this season when he steps on the court in October. Despite being in the back end of his career, LeBron has continued to play at an elite level and exceed expectations.
The Lakers will be facing off against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets for their first official game of the 2023-2024 NBA season. This announcement perplexed fans to an extent considering that the Lakers are still being given a lot of attention when compared to other teams.
In fact, some NBA fans have started spreading theories as to why the Lakers have been chosen to play against the defending champions. With that being said, let us take a closer look at the situation and find out more.
LeBron James and the Lakers will face off against the Denver Nuggets for the 2023-2024 NBA season opener
The Lakers have always been a historic franchise across the league. The attention that they have been receiving from the media and fans alike only increased after LeBron James joined the team. Since they managed to win the 2020 NBA championship in the Orlando Bubble, there is no denying that LeBron has seen success with the Lakers.
LeBron and the Lakers got to face off against Stephen Curry and the Golden State Warriors at the start of last season. Fans will remember that the Warriors were the 2022 NBA champions and defending their position at that point in time.
Now, it has been revealed that the Lakers will be playing against the Denver Nuggets to start off the 2023-2024 NBA season. This makes it the second time that the Lakers will be playing the defending champions on the night when they officially receive their championship rings.
Adam Silver is nasty for using the Lakers to make ppl care about the Nuggets ring night
He knows there would only be 11 ppl watching that if they weren’t playing us smh
— 🏆LakersGuru🏆 (@GuruLakers) August 11, 2023
As a result, some NBA fans have opined that there could be unseen forces at work, “this is the second straight season the NBA has made the Lakers and LeBron watch another team’s ring ceremony on opening night. I think it’s safe to say, the league is trying to send a message.”
this is the second straight season the NBA has made the Lakers and LeBron watch another team’s ring ceremony on opening night.
I think it’s safe to say, the league is trying to send a message… 👀🌶️ pic.twitter.com/dOHs2ZqXnt
— 73-9 and THEY LIED (@CuffsTheLegend) August 10, 2023
Others merely claimed that the Lakers are the most popular team and that all of this has to do with ratings and nothing more. In any case, fans should expect the Los Angeles Lakers to be quite motivated next season.