The Denver Nuggets released their preseason schedule today, which included four games: three on the road and a home game against the Portland Trail Blazers on October 17th at Pepsi Center.
The NBA decided to move the opening games of the 2019-20 regular season back a week. During 2018-19, opening games began during the middle of October. This year, one should expect opening night to occur on Tuesday October 22nd based on the above preseason schedule, most likely including the NBA champion Toronto Raptors and the Los Angeles Clippers or Lakers in some way, shape, or form.
This later start to the preseason schedule will give Nuggets players participating in FIBA World Cup festivities enough time to recover from the lengthy engagement. The World Cup will conclude on September 15th this year, meaning Jamal Murray, Nikola Jokic, Juancho Hernangomez, and possibly Paul Millsap will be given time to rest after representing their countries in international play.
October 8th in Portland could be the first game Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr. could suit up to play professional basketball as well. After a long road to recovery with a variety of speed bumps along the way, all signs point to Porter participating in preseason activities. Nuggets fans won’t be able to watch the first two games on Altitude TV, but the latter two, including a preseason rematch with the Blazers at Pepsi Center, will be broadcasted by the hometown TV station.
It’s a small piece of the puzzle, but Nuggets fans getting their first look at Porter, Jerami Grant, and Bol Bol in a Nuggets uniform could provide some genuine excitement heading into the 2019-20 regular season. The Nuggets are gearing up for their first championship run in several seasons, so consider this a brief look at things to come.