- Portland Trailblazers had all their starters out injured for the NBA regular season game
- The team started with rookies starting the match
- Become the only the second team in NBA history
NBA starting line-ups are important to give your side a strong start in the match. It is often seen that teams with a strong starting five tend to win matches. But with star players and regular starters injured, Portland Trailblazers were forced to start with rookies against defending champions Denver Nuggets on Sunday. This is only the second time that has happened since starters were first tracked on NBA box scores more than 50 years ago.
Scoot Henderson was in the lineup along with Duop Reath, Kris Murray, Toumani Camara and Rayan Rupert against the reigning NBA champions. The only other team to do so was the Golden State Warriors on April 26, 2012. Starters were first tracked on NBA box scores in the 1971-72 season.
2023 NBA Champions Denver Nuggets Struggled to Dismantle Feeble Portland Trailblazers Team
The Nuggets also took the opportunity to rest their star duo of Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray. This somehow put the teams on a similar level and allowed the Blazers to fight for a win. Scoot Henderson (24 Points) and Duop Reath (22 Points) put up an offensive show but the Nuggets escaped with a 114-111 victory.
“Any time you can win a game without Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, especially on the road, you’re always going to take that, I’m proud of our group for just fighting through it. Give them credit, they came out of halftime with a head of steam and got us on our heels. We didn’t play any defence in (third) quarter, but down the stretch, we made enough plays to get the win.”
Nuggets coach Michael Malone on the game against Portland Trailblazers.
The reigning champs have won eight of their last nine and are 14-2 since the All-Star Break. They will now face the Suns and third-placed Timberwolves next at home.
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