Hometown kid Dalton Knecht helped out the Lakers with 32 points in a starting role. The Nuggets couldn’t defend, but they found enough buckets in the end.

Fortunately, with the game on the line, Nikola Jokic set a massive (moving?) screen, taking out two defenders, which opened the door for Jamal Murray to save the day for the Nuggets. It was an ugly win for the Nuggets,

Denver struggled against a depleted Lakers team, and coach Michael Malone has to walk a fine line between urgency and rest.

The Los Angeles Lakers (40-24) and Denver Nuggets (42-24) are all set to square off from Ball Arena in Denver. The Lakers had a challenging game last night against the Milwaukee Bucks. They were down big for much of the game and couldn’t generate offense outside of Luca Doncic.

Analyzing Friday’s Los Angeles Lakers at Denver Nuggets odds and lines, with NBA expert picks, predictions and best bets.