Nuggets Coach Reminds Lakers of Recent Sweeps Ahead of NBA Playoff Series

The Denver Nuggets will face the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday to launch their first-round series in the 2024 NBA playoffs. It will be a revenge series of sorts for Los Angeles, as the Nuggets swept the Lakers in the Western Conference finals last season.

Nuggets coach Michael Malone is very much aware that the Lakers are entering the first round with a chip on their shoulders from last year's postseason. It doesn't help that the Nuggets beat the Lakers in all three regular-season matchups in 2023-24, too.

The last time the Lakers defeated the Nuggets was a 126–108 victory on Dec. 16, 2022.

“We swept them last year. We swept them this year," Malone said, via Harrison Wind at DNVR Sports. "They come in playing really well and hungry. They want to flip that script. Our players understand that.”

After Denver swept Los Angeles last postseason, Malone and LeBron James both spoke about each other in the media. This series will likely spark more viral comments between the two.

The No. 2-seeded Nuggets enter the 2024 playoffs as the reigning champions. Game 1 tips off at 8:30 p.m. ET on Saturday at Ball Arena.