Unthinkably, Michael Porter Jr. would be made of iron, if not for some faulty string.

On Feb. 9 in Sacramento, the Nuggets were embarking on a two-game weekend road trip. They were mercifully one week away from the All-Star break, a much-needed breather for a team that had played 102 games the previous season en route to a championship.

Porter, in particular, was pushing himself physically more than any season yet in his NBA career. He hadn’t missed a single game. An upcoming vacation in Mexico was going to work wonders for him, if he could just … make it … to the break.

Then, a shoe debacle.

“The shoes that I had packed — the laces were torn, and I just didn’t feel safe playing in them,” Porter said last Sunday. “I brought the wrong shoes, really.”

So MPJ sat that night in Sacramento, a 135-106 blowout loss that began a three-game skid going into All-Star weekend. He didn’t miss another contest. In fact, he returned from Mexico with a mild sunburn and a blazing 3-point stroke. He shot 50.9% from the field, 40.4% beyond the arc and 90.7% from the foul line in Denver’s last 27 games of the regular season, a 21-6 stretch for the team.

“The one game I missed was because I didn’t have the right shoes,” Porter said, smiling.

Lacing them up (safely) for 81 of 82 isn’t too shabby, especially given Porter’s extensive injury history. He’s had three back surgeries since the Nuggets drafted him 14th overall in 2018, missing 70 or more games in multiple seasons. His previous career high in games played was last season, when he appeared in 62, plus all 20 playoff contests. In Denver’s title defense, his regular season alone almost equalled the combined total from 2022-23.

“After everything I’ve been through,” he said, “that probably means the most to me out of everything.”

Porter’s evolution into a pillar of durability represents his team’s sturdiness. The Nuggets are entering their first-round series against the Lakers with a starting lineup that played 958 minutes together in the regular season. No other five-man lineup in the league played 800 minutes. The last time a five-man unit played more than 958 minutes together in any regular season was 2017-18, when the Jimmy Butler-featured Timberwolves used a lineup that surpassed 1,100 minutes.

In addition to being consistently available, this Nuggets starting five was nearly unstoppable. Its net rating for the season was 13.6.

Porter has been critical, stepping up and embracing his role as a second scoring option whenever Jamal Murray has been out due to various leg injuries (the only persistent health problem Denver’s faced all season).

“I told Michael he deserves so much credit,” coach Michael Malone said. “The reason he dropped to us on draft night was because there were concerns about his health and his back. For him to get to this point where he’s playing 81 of 82 games and playing at a high level is just incredible.”

The 6-foot-10 perimeter sniper wanted to prove something to himself in the 82nd and final game of the regular season. Porter was feeling ill. The Nuggets were in Memphis for a game they probably could have survived without a starter or two. After all, the Grizzlies were missing 13 players, according to their own injury report.

“I don’t know if I got food poisoning from the pregame meal or what it was, but I was down bad the last couple nights, throwing up and stuff,” Porter said. “But I’d played 80 out of 81 games, and the one game I missed was because I didn’t have the right shoes. So I wanted to finish the regular season playing every game that I could. … I didn’t want to miss a game because I couldn’t play.”

Let it be known, then: The only reason Porter didn’t have an Iron Man season was wardrobe-related, not health-related.

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The best way to play a LeBron James flop? Have a Joker up your sleeve.

“Listen: To have the success that they’ve had, as great as (Nikola) Jokic has been­ — if you go back and look at that (Western) Conference Finals, the Lakers had no answer,” former NBA guard Greg Anthony, now an analyst with Warner Bros. Discovery and NBA TV, told me this week. “If that continues to be the case, it’s going to be a struggle for them to have in the series.”

Welcome to the NBA Playoffs, when Old Man ‘Bron suddenly turns into the best actor in Hollywood. The Denzel of dives, the Pacino of plummet.

Consider this your friendly annual public service reminder that the Lakers are about to sign a 30-day lease at the free-throw line and dare the NBA to raise its rent. Over their last 22 postseason games, four of which were a sweep at the hands of the Nuggets, the LakeShow’s averaged 25.1 free-throw attempts per 100 possessions. Their opponents, if you’re curious, went to the stripe 18.5 times.

Justice is blind. So are the zebras. Best keep the loved ones and sharp objects at a safe distance.

“Listen, if you’re Denver, I wouldn’t be concerned with the (Lakers) whistle, or anything else,” Anthony said. “(The Nuggets are) the defending champs. ‘We beat this team. We swept them in a conference final, regardless of the whistle.’ You have to feel like you have a better game.

“And so that, I think, has to be the mindset. You can play games with the officials to try to (get an edge) and be somewhere else or create a different (advantage), but ultimately, you have to go out and perform.”

You want the truth? Oh, Jack Nicholson, we can handle the truth. It’s the whistles that drive us batty. King James drew 59 fourth-quarter fouls in the ’20 and ’23 postseasons combined. Twenty of those 59 came against Denver. In just nine matchups.

“I don’t know if (the Lakers whistle) is a myth,” ex-NBA guard Jamal Crawford, now an analyst with Warner Bros. Discovery, reflected. “I haven’t heard that exact (stat).

“But obviously, (with) a guy like LeBron, the playoffs are going to be a little more physical. But you have guard him with a wall and you have to be willing to concede … is it, ‘OK, we’re gonna make LeBron try to get 50 today?’ Or, ‘We’re going to take everything away and make the other guys beat us.’

“He’s one of the great minds you’ve ever seen in basketball. You could put Joker up there as well, now. Even if you try to make him do something, he can always counter it. It may not be at quite the level he wants it to be or quite the level you want it to be, because you guys are playing that chess match within the game.”

At 39, even though he’s lost a step, ‘Bron still knows when to move his bishop. Since 2019, James has drawn a foul once every 6.39 minutes during a playoff tilt vs. the Nuggs during the second half. In the fourth quarter? Once every 4.75 minutes.

Context: Over all of his playoff appearances in ’19-20 and ’22-23, the future Hall-of-Famer drew a second-half foul once every 6.87 minutes. In the fourth quarter? Once every 5.7 minutes. The man’s postseason flop rate jumps 30% whenever Jokic and Jamal Murray share the spotlight.

And you wonder why we’re paranoid? Just a little?

“It’s still a 2 versus a 7 (seed),” Anthony said. “And I do think this series is going to be an interesting one. Especially just to kind of get a sense of what Darvin Ham’s game plan will be. What adjustments will he make to try to counter some of what Denver presents in terms of challenges?”

At the same time, know this: Your rage is absolutely, completely justified. So is your satisfaction at watching the Lakers turn Stephen A. Smith into Daffy Duck. The Nuggs are plus-25, combined, in their last seven fourth quarters against the Lakers. On this stage, the right hand and perfect chemistry always beats bad acting. Even in La La Land.

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BOULDER — For a cat with a private jet, Deion Sanders sure seems to lose a lot of his luggage.

“We’re good. We’re good,” the CU Buffs’ second-year football coach said during a news conference Thursday, roughly a week ahead of the program’s April 27 spring game. “I trust our recruiting team. I trust the coaches. And please have some faith in me.”

More faith than some of his players, at any rate. The transfer portal for FBS players opened Tuesday. According to On3.com, as of early Thursday afternoon, 15 Buffs had jumped into the portal since April 1.

The company line, one Coach Prime doubled down on, is that the losses were strictly cosmetic. Benchwarmers. Nobody who was going to, ya know, actually play.

Only here’s the thing: Some weren’t nobodies. Actually, a handful were very, very much set up to be somebodies. Cormani McClain was the top cornerback recruit in the country, Deion’s first five-star get at CU. He bailed.

Alton McCaskill IV was a four-star transfer tailback from Houston, the 2021 AAC Rookie of the Year — a 6-foot-1 banger, Big 12 fast and Big 12 big, potential thunder to Dylan Edwards’ lightning. He’s gone, too.

2023: We coming!

2024: They going!

Oh, brother. Are they ever going.

“I think this would be (the same with) every school. That’s not just here,” Sanders said when I asked about the quantity of departures. “That’s what every school (deals with). You (media) guys just are compensated to pay attention to us a little more than anybody else.”

Well, yes … and no.

As a point of reference, 15 departures with two weeks until the portal closes is more than any other Big 12 school. Like, a lot more. In fact, the only peer even close to that kind of turnover is Houston, with 11 players reportedly leaving. The other 15 Big 12 football programs have averaged 2.9 portal jumps this month.

Last year, Sanders’ roster makeover was historic, cold and callous. But it was also allowed, and, objectively, understandable given the university’s desire to slash or burn everything associated with a 1-11 dumpster fire in 2022.

But this? This is Prime chucking his own Louis Vuittons from the jet bridge.

The company line, again, is that more mass departures out of CU equals more talent coming in, and fair enough. Although that’s only so far been proven in terms of skill positions and in the secondary.

Deion is a star who recognizes stars, hangs with stars and knows how to chase and woo them. But outside of The Chosen Ones, his own children and Travis Hunter, has he developed many stars as a coach?

The Jackson State Era produced two NFL draft picks. Sanders doesn’t have the patience. Or the time. He’s got a TV show. He’s got a promotional appearance. He’s got a book signing. He’s got a lake that won’t fish itself.

The 247Sports.com database lists 72 players as part of CU’s 2023 recruiting class, 51 of them transfers. As of 2 p.m. local time Thursday, 27 of them had either entered or re-entered the portal. That includes nine of the 21 non-transfers.

It’s not them, Deion.

It’s you, my man.

You can’t help it. It’s the only road you know. The only song in the hymnal. The player standards are high, which is noble. But the strike zone enforcement, some have intimated, is all over the map. If the wrong guy doesn’t fit, move ’em along. The grass is always greener.

Of course, some of those “wrong guys” sure do come in handy after a few of the “right” guys happen to get hurt. Which they inevitably will.

And yes, some of that Louis luggage absolutely did this to themselves. Sanders made it very clear last fall, and early on, that McClain had set up a futon in Prime’s doghouse. That the road out was going to be long and hard, that responsibilities weren’t being met, and it was up to him to shape up or ship out.

The kid shipped.

“I want the best for him. I really do,” Coach Prime said of McClain. “I want that kid to soar. I want him to man up. I want him to be the best possible athlete and human being he can be. I want him to fulfill all those dreams that his mother and he desire. I really, really do.”

McCaskill’s situation, though, is more nebulous. He was hurt in 2023, or beat out, depending on when you asked and whom.

The young man’s father muddied the waters more when he posted on social media that the younger McCaskill “was ready last year … he’s 100% this year …unfortunately have to find another home where there’s no favoritism and he is valued, appreciated and has no doubts about RB1 …. he is the best RB in Colorado … but (he’s) not settling! We going!”

A statement which, to be fair, sounds a lot like a dad looking out for his son. A political position Coach Prime understands intimately.

“A lot of people are fighting for backups,” Sanders said. “When a guy is a starter and he transfers, you’ve really gotta think about that. We have some coming in for visits pretty soon, we can attract those type of players, but I don’t think we’re losing those type of players. And if we do, we’re good.”

Yeah, but 16-20 departures every spring? That’s not how you develop a program, Coach. It’s how you develop a rep. It’s how you develop baggage. And not the cheap stuff, either.

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They gave us what we wanted: The Nuggets back on stage with Maury Povich and a manila envelope. In the case of the 64-year-old Los Angeles Lakers, you are the father.

Denver welcomes the Lakers back to Ball Arena on Saturday as family. Cup your ears from Trinidad to Windsor and you can still hear the “Who’s your daddy?” chant that reverberated throughout Ball Arena on Ring Night back in October.

This came mere months after the Nuggets broomed the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals, exorcising a few playoff demons in the process.

It was the exclamation point in a series of wows for the Nuggets last postseason, culminating in their first NBA championship. Of course, much of the talk in the days following Denver’s sweep was about how the Lakers delivered the best performance ever by a team swept — the lamest compliment of all time — and whether or not LeBron James would retire. (Spoiler alert: He didn’t.)

So, my friends, here we are again. Everything is the same, yet different. The Nuggets enter as heavy favorites. The numbers remain striking. Denver boasts an eight-game winning streak against the Lakers. The Nuggets have outscored them by 32 points in clutch time over the last two seasons, per ESPN. When it matters most vs. Los Angeles, the Nuggets play their best.

The reason: Nikola Jokic.

The Joker would prefer we never talk about him or the likelihood he will win his third MVP award in four years. The more attention he receives, the more he defers, which is also what makes him one of the greatest passers of all time, regardless of position.

His desire to live in the shadows remains a juxtaposition to his game. He wants the moment. There is no panic. The Nuggets win late because Jokic is calmer than a lagoon and Jamal Murray has Prestone running through his veins. Jokic drained 3-point rainbow shots against the Lakers last postseason that made Anthony Davis throw his arms up in disbelief.

Jokic is not just reliable. He is inevitable. When considering why the Nuggets will win this series — I am picking Denver in five — it starts with the Joker on multiple levels.

First, who is going to slow him down? Rui Hachimura? Please. He caused a few clumsy possessions last year, but he can’t guard Jokic with help from those guys wearing bearskin hats at Buckingham Palace. If anything, he offers a diversion to prevent Davis from matching up with Jokic head-to-head on every possession.

We can all agree that Jokic will get his. And this series will be another sweep if he wins the matchup with Davis as he did over the final three games of last year’s conference finals. Jokic averaged 25.7 points, 12.3 rebounds and 11.0 assists while shooting 36% from beyond the arc. Davis countered with 22.3 points, 15.3  rebounds and 2.8 blocks. It does not seem like a lot until you consider that the four games were decided by an average of six points.

The disparity widened during this past regular season. Jokic delivered 29.3 points, 12 boards and nine assists with Davis at 22.3 points and 9.3 rebounds. Jokic exudes no arrogance and fittingly called the Lakers probably the “toughest” opponent Denver faced during its title run. His respect for them is real. He is hard not like. And even harder to contain.

Coach Michael Malone takes nothing for granted, admitting Denver’s win streak does not mean anything. He’s right. Sort of. The Nuggets own this string of dominance because the most important matchup — Jokic vs. the world — tilts in their favor.

This is not to suggest the Lakers have no chance. I would never say that about a LeBron James team. He is as ageless as Cindy Crawford and has lost only one first-round playoff series in his career. As such, the Lakers are dangerous. They have shown they can compete with the Nuggets. They just have not shown they can beat the Nuggets.

There is a school of thought that the Lakers are better off facing the Nuggets now. I agree. When your best player is creeping close to 40 years old, fatigue becomes an issue. Los Angeles will be fresher, and they are better than a year ago because of the added offense provided by Hachimura and D’Angelo Russell.

Acknowledging that the Lakers will not solve Jokic, the only way this series gets greasy traces back to Russell. His impact this season has been hard to ignore. He is shooting 41% from 3, same as a year ago. It’s not the number that is going in, but when. He is making big shots. Like at New Orleans in the play-in game.

Will he be a factor? In the Western Conference Finals, he became a liability, unable to guard Murray. He shrank in the spotlight, averaging 6.3 points and 3.5 assists as Murray sank 32.5 points per game. Russell will close this gap, but not significantly.

Whether in April or late May, this is the series we wanted. Lakers vs. Nuggets. For Denver, there will be four more victories. And further proof of paternity.

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Clippers star Kawhi Leonard is 'questionable' to play Game 1 against the Dallas Mavericks as he deals with a knee injury that has kept him out eight games.

As the Denver Nuggets enter the Western Conference playoffs for the sixth consecutive season, a breakdown of their first-round rematch against the Los Angeles Lakers:

Who has the edge?

Guards: D’Angelo Russell was a defensive liability in the Western Conference Finals last season, and his offense seemed to suffer from it. The Nuggets, namely Bruce Brown, played him off the floor. An 18-point-per-game scorer only reached double figures in one of the four games, piling extra responsibility on Austin Reaves’ shoulders. This season, Reaves’ 3-point shooting dropped 3%, but Russell’s improved to 41.5%. He was the unheralded MVP of the Lakers’ play-in victory over New Orleans. If the Nuggets can close out strong to him and expose him again at the defensive end, they’ll tilt the series. The best news for Denver: Jamal Murray is a matchup problem for the Lakers, and it showed last year. The Nuggets won his minutes by 11.6 points per 100 possessions in the 2023 series, an even better net rating than Nikola Jokic’s minutes yielded. Neither Russell nor Reaves should have an answer defensively for Murray. Edge: Nuggets.

Wings: After Game 3 in Los Angeles, LeBron James will have played an entire 82-game season’s worth of first-round playoff games in his career. He is 62-17 so far, and in the 16 first-round series he has been a part of, he has advanced 15 times. James’ defense has taken an understandable dive with age, but he’s still defying categorization (Is he a wing? Or a big?) as the engine of a Los Angeles offense that ranked sixth in the NBA over the last 15 games of the regular season. At 39, he has produced the best jump-shooting campaign of his Hall of Fame career at 41% beyond the arc. Aaron Gordon, doubling as Denver’s backup center, will be James’ primary defender, but the Nuggets have other strong wing defenders they can throw at him, from Peyton Watson to Christian Braun. Los Angeles would likely rather get Michael Porter Jr. or Murray switched onto James as often as possible. Edge: Lakers.

Bigs: How many minutes at a time can the Lakers depend on Anthony Davis to guard Nikola Jokic straight up, before they decide they need to mix up coverages? On paper, the post matchup at the center of this series is as epic as it’s ever been: Davis is a deserved Defensive Player of the Year candidate on an otherwise defensively flawed team. Jokic represents the synthesis of power and finesse on offense. But recent evidence reveals this showdown to be more skewed than it should be. In Denver’s ongoing eight-game win streak against the Lakers, Jokic is averaging 26.6 points (54.2% from the floor), 14.4 rebounds and 11.3 assists. In short: The Lakers aren’t taking away his scoring or facilitating. They can experiment with gimmicky coverages all they want (see: Davis roams the court while Rui Hachimura is Jokic’s primary), but those only tend to work for so long before Jokic finds a solution. Eventually, if Los Angeles wants to conquer the champs, Davis needs to hold up mano-a-mano against Jokic and match his production. Edge: Nuggets.

Bench: Reggie Jackson and Spencer Dinwiddie probably cancel each other out. Christian Braun and Peyton Watson are inconsistent, but Taurean Prince and Gabe Vincent shouldn’t be striking much fear into them. The Pelicans would have been a problem in this area. They feature a top-three bench in the NBA. But the Lakers and Nuggets both typically lose their bench minutes, so the second units should be fairly negligible in determining the outcome of the series. And for Denver, when Jokic isn’t on the floor, negligible is a win. Edge: Nuggets.

Coaching: There was a prolonged moment this season when Darvin Ham was rumored to be on the hot seat. Maybe he still is. Either way, the ground is firm beneath Michael Malone’s feet for a reason. In Denver’s Game 82 last week, he moved past George Karl to become the second-winningest regular-season coach in franchise history. Edge: Nuggets.

Five things to watch

1. No Fake Show: Prior to the Lakers’ play-in matchup at New Orleans, a few L.A. media members suggested the team should throw the game in order to avoid a first-round matchup with the Nuggets. Unsurprisingly, that idea was emphatically rejected in the Lakers locker room. After taking down the Pelicans to clinch a playoff rematch, forward Anthony David declared they are “not ducking the smoke.” Head coach Darvin Ham castigated the “insane asylum sources” who dared suggest such a scheme. And LeBron James declared, “It’s about just winning.” While the Lakers might not be afraid, one thing is crystal clear: The Nuggets are living rent-free in Lakers Nation’s heads.

2. One-sided rivalry: Of course, the Southland has good reason to want no part of the Nuggets. The main one: The defending champs are going on eight straight wins against the Lakers, including all three of this year’s regular-season matchups, last spring’s four-game sweep in the Western Conference Finals and a 122-109 home win in early January 2023. This year’s defeats have been especially troublesome for the LakeShow, given that two came in L.A. on the nights Kobe Bryant’s statue was unveiled and LeBron James passed 40,000 career points. As for the third? That was Ring Night at Ball Arena.

3. Monitoring Jamal: The one dark cloud looming over Denver’s title defense: Jamal Murray’s health. The veteran guard missed seven straight games near the end of the regular season due to multiple leg injuries and 23 total this season. The Nuggets were 13-10 in those games, underscoring a reality already made clear the two previous postseasons when he was sidelined by an ACL tear: The Nuggets need Murray to win a title. He’s been as good as ever this season with career-high averages in points (21.2) and assists (6.5), and career-best shooting numbers (48.1% overall, 42.5% from 3). Asked about Murray’s availability earlier this week, head coach Michael Malone expressed little worry: “Jamal is a warrior; he’ll be ready to go.”

4. Marking D-Lo: Last spring, Lakers guard D’Angelo Russell got played off the floor in the conference finals. A year later, he was L.A.’s savior against New Orleans in the play-in round with five 3s, including a corner 3 in the waning minutes that all but sealed the win. The performance continued what’s been something of a renaissance season for Russell, who shot a career-best 41.5% from 3 while averaging 18.0 points and 6.3 assists. If the Nuggets are going to blitz the Lakers’ screens as they’ve done in the past, this much is known: They cannot afford to leave Russell unattended.

5. Bench rotation: Nuggets coach Michael Malone has been relatively predictable with his substitution patterns throughout the second half of the season, with Christian Braun, Peyton Watson, Reggie Jackson and Justin Holiday regular contributors. Starters’ minutes almost always rise in the postseason, however, leading to shrinking opportunities for the reserves. That was the case last year for Malone, who limited himself to three subs during Denver’s title run. If that’s the case again, who’s the odd man out?

Staff Predictions

Bennett Durando, Nuggets beat writer: I’m inclined to warn this might not be as lopsided as last year, when LeBron James appeared to be running out of gas toward the end of every game, having already shepherded the underdog Lakers through multiple rounds. The circumstances are more aligned in their favor this time. But there’s just no getting around the fact that Denver is the better team with the better player. It’ll end in the same building. Nuggets in six.

Sean Keeler, sports columnist: Let’s make this simple — if D’Angelo Russell is great, the Nuggets are in trouble. Bron’s gonna Bron. AD’s gonna AD. This thing probably comes down to roster spots 3-7, and the Nuggs still win that matchup 98 times out of 100. Now if Russell catches fire? Clutch those rosary beads. History says he won’t, though: Over the Lakers guard’s last six games vs. Denver, he’s shooting 22.2% on treys (6 of 27) and 35.7% from the floor (20 of 56). The worse seed in the history of playoff meetings between the Nuggs-Lakers has never won a series. If you don’t trust your eyes, trust the math. In this case, trust both. Nuggets in six.

Ryan McFadden, sports reporter: Even though the Lakers are underdogs, it’s hard to see Denver sweeping them again. Los Angeles has played solid lately, winning seven of its last nine, including a victory over the Pelicans in the play-in round. Even at the age of 39, James is playing elite basketball. At the same time, it’s hard to bet against Nikola Jokic and the benefit of home-court advantage. It’ll will be interesting to see how Peyton Watson handles a bigger role in this year’s postseason, but I have full confidence in Denver taking care of business in the first round. Nuggets in five. 

Troy Renck, sports columnist: Nuggets in three. Is that a thing? The Lakers figured they would have to face the Nuggets at some point, so why not in the first round when LeBron James and Anthony Davis are fresh. The Lakers can compete with the Nuggets. They just can’t beat the Nuggets. The only chance of an upset is if D’Angelo Russell, who was a liability vs. Denver last postseason, makes more big shots than Tom Cruise in “Cocktail.” He’s good. He’s not that good. Nuggets in five.

Matt Schubert, sports editor: It’s hard to argue against eight straight Nuggets wins vs. the Lakers, Jamal Murray (29.7 points, 6.6 assists, 5.9 rebounds) shooting laser beams out of his eyes during said streak, or (soon to be) three MVPs in four seasons for Nikola Jokic. It’s also hard to argue against LeBron James’ 15-1 series record in the first round, King James and Anthony Davis getting the benefit of more rest in the spread-out opening round, and D’Angelo Russell’s recent star turn on the perimeter. Then again, maybe it isn’t. Nuggets in five.

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Balkan spirits and Detroit-style slices were served to the various factions of the Denver Nuggets as they learned which opponent they would be facing in the playoffs.

Jambalaya is officially off the table.

It’s Nuggets vs. Lakers for the third time in five years after Los Angeles knocked off the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night. Before the defending champions got to work Wednesday with their first matchup-focused practice of the week, they enjoyed some quality time together with multiple NBA Play-In Tournament watch parties.

The players met at Nikola Jokic’s house for the game. The coaches watched at the office, ordering from local pizzeria Blue Pan. “Gotta give them a shoutout, they always take care of us,” head coach Michael Malone said. “And (we) were able to watch the game and meet and discuss after the game.”

Full of pizza, the coaches assembled a schedule for the week and examined matchup personnel. Meanwhile, on the players’ side?

“It was a blast,” Peyton Watson said. “It’s always a good time when we can all get together. And it’s always an honor when the two-time MVP, soon to be three, invites you over to his house to indulge in a basketball game. So definitely went over there, drank a little Rakija. Got acquainted. A little ritual right before the playoffs. Kind of just letting loose and having a good night with my guys (to) bond a little bit before we get into these serious playoffs.”

The Lakers are as serious as it gets. Both of these teams have eliminated the other to reach the NBA Finals in the last four years. After the Nuggets swept Los Angeles in 2023, Anthony Davis called out Denver for continuing to trash-talk during the offseason. At training camp, Malone rejected the idea that it was transforming into a rivalry. “Oh, they’re talking about us?” he said in San Diego. “Yeah, that was, like, four months ago?” Then the Nuggets proceeded to win all three regular-season matchups, spoiling the Kobe Bryant statue unveiling and LeBron James surpassing 40,000 career points in separate road games.

Of course, it was all leading to a playoff rematch.

“We know them. They know us,” Malone said Wednesday at Ball Arena. “And we know what to expect.”

So while the Lakers’ play designs and personnel were a part of Denver’s practice, it was equally focused on broader themes — such as the Lakers ranking fifth in the NBA in transition scoring per game and second in transition efficiency. Or that the LeBron James-led offense averages 55.6 points in the paint, leading the Western Conference.

Questions for Malone and Jokic largely revolved around Denver’s eight-game win streak against Los Angeles dating back to the 2022-23 regular season. The coach and the star player downplayed the idea that the Nuggets are a matchup problem for the Lakers.

“I think every game in the playoff series last year was really tough,” Jokic said. “Could’ve went either way. … Yes, we beat them 4-0, but they’re a really talented team. They’re really well-built.”

“Everyone keeps talking about how we’ve beaten them eight games in a row, and as I told our players today, that doesn’t mean anything,” Malone said. “This is a different team, a different series, and we know what we have in front of us. It’ll be a hell of a challenge to beat the Lakers in the playoffs.”

Having seen the same roster in a best-of-seven series so recently does help from a scouting perspective, Jokic acknowledged. He saw every type of coverage the Lakers had in the 2023 showdown, from single-teams to double-teams, from Anthony Davis as a primary defender to Rui Hachimura. Even James guarded him in the post for a while as Darvin Ham was looking for a solution.

“I think we match up with them really good and they match up with us really good,” Jokic said. “… They can do a couple different things on defense. On offense, we can put some other guys on their main players. So I think it’s gonna be really interesting basketball-wise. Strategy-wise, I think it’s gonna be really interesting.”

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When Ross Colton scored his 15th goal of the season last month, he turned and jumped into the arms of Zach Parise.

It was a great moment for Colton, who grew up in New Jersey with Parise as one of his favorite players. Colton has a photo of that embrace, and he intends to find a frame for it. He might want to grab another photo with one of his teenage idols Thursday night.

Parise, who joined the Avalanche just before the All-Star break after taking the first half of the season off, confirmed Wednesday to The Denver Post that the contest against Edmonton at Ball Arena will be the last regular-season game of a long and distinguished career.

“Yeah, I’ve decided,” Parise said. “I’m not going to make a big deal out of it. I was content coming back that this would be the last one.”

It will be regular-season game No. 1,254 for Parise, who has also played for the Devils, his hometown Minnesota Wild and the New York Islanders. He’s eighth all-time among American-born players with 433 goals. His goal with 25 seconds left in regulation helped the United States reach overtime in the gold medal game of the 2010 Olympics before Sidney Crosby scored one of the most famous goals in hockey history for Canada.

Parise had 21 goals for the Islanders last season, but decided he was ready to hang up his skates this past summer … until he wasn’t. Then he spent the first half of the season working himself back into playing shape before signing Jan. 26 with the Avalanche.

“It’s been awesome to be a part of,” Parise said. “The experience itself. Playing with these guys and even just practicing with them, it makes you a better player — even at my age. It’s gone even better than I thought it would.”

Parise has four goals and nine points in 29 games for the Avs. He’s moved around quite a bit in the lineup with various injuries. The forwards he’s played the most with are Colton and Miles Wood, who also played for a long time with the Devils.

The pace at which he can play, even as he approaches his 40th birthday, and his versatility was attractive to Colorado as the Avs searched for another depth forward.

“Knowing how he is, you knew he was going to come here in shape and ready to go. I had no doubt in my mind that he could step in and play,” said Avs defenseman Jack Johnson, who played with Parise at the 2010 Olympics. “He’s just a great guy to have around. He’s a great pro. Does everything right. Has a great attitude every day. Works hard, works on his craft — just a great human being on and off the ice and a great example for the younger guys.”

Parise didn’t come back to play with the Avs to pad his regular-season resume. He’s here because there’s one big thing missing: a Stanley Cup championship. He got close with the Devils in 2012, losing to the Los Angeles Kings in the Stanley Cup Final.

The Avs have a lot of players who won the Cup in 2022. Colton won with the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2021. Jared Bednar said recently that helping Parise get his first is one of the reasons he wants to win again this season.

Bednar isn’t alone.

“Everybody wants to win, obviously. I think it would be even more special for him and to help him win,” Colton said. “I think when the time comes, it will be something we can rally around.

“He’s been a great leader. A great mentor. Just doing stuff with him, like after practice and trying to be a sponge with the way he carries himself on and off the ice. I’ve been pretty fortunate to play with him and it’s been pretty special. He was one of my favorite players, if not my favorite player. It’s kind of been a full-circle moment for me.”

Parise joked that Colton likes talking about the Devils’ 2012 run more than his championship with the Lightning, and that the situation reminds him of when he was a younger guy in the New Jersey locker room with players like Martin Brodeur and Scott Gomez sitting in the stalls near him.

He’s already going to be remembered as one of the best American players of all time. Now he’s ready for one last dance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

“(Coming back) was a great idea. No. 1, it has been fun,” Parise said. “It’s been just a really good experience to play with these players, and to have one more crack at it. I’m happy I did it. Hopefully, we’ll be playing for a couple more months.”

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