NBA: Portland Trail Blazers vs Denver Nuggets player ratings, result

The Moda Center saw the Portland Trail Blazers host the Denver Nuggets in their regular-season opener on Thursday morning. The Nuggets finished second in the Western Conference last season, while the Trail Blazers managed to come in third. In what was a rematch of last season's Western Conference semi-finals, the Thursday morning game was the Blazers' 14th match-up against the Nuggets within the last year. Familiarity, therefore, wasn't an issue between the two sides.

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The Blazers completely overhauled their roster this season, with a total of seven outgoings in the offseason. These outgoings, however, were balanced out by the Blazers adding six new faces to their roster, along with three new starters. The number of changes will bode well for Blazers' coach Terry Stotts, as he looks to steer the Blazers to another deep run in the Western Conference this time around. 

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Jamal Murray, Gary Harris, Will Barton, Paul Millsap and Nikola Jokic started the game for the Nuggets, as they looked to get one over the Blazers after the Nuggets were left with a bitter taste in their mouths after the semi-final defeat last season. In another exciting match-up, the Blazers headed into the third quarter with a marginal 74-73 lead with Damian Lillard leading the way with 19 points and eight assists. With five minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Blazers held on to an 88-87 lead. But the visitors had other plans, as Nikola Jokic turned it on for the Nuggets in the dying minutes of the game. Jokic's offensive turn meant that the Nuggets got one over the Blazers at the Moda Center, with the game ending at 108-100 in favour of the Denver Nuggets. 

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Player Ratings

Portland Trail Blazers

Rodney Hood - 6.5/10

Damian Lillard - 8.5/10

CJ McCollum - 7/10

Hasan Whiteside - 7/10

 Zach Collins - 6/10

Kent Bazemore - 6/10

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Denver Nuggets

Nikola Jokic - 8/10

Will Barton - 7.5/10

Jamal Murray - 7/10

Paul Millsap - 6.5/10

Torrey Craig - 6/10

Monte Morris - 6/10