Jazz at Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers lost their first game during the era in which Anthony Davis and LeBron James are teammates. Los Angeles looks to chase that initial victory again on Friday when it hosts the Utah Jazz.
Davis had 25 points and 10 rebounds while James contributed 18 points, nine rebounds and eight assists on Tuesday, when the Lakers were outclassed 112-102 by the Los Angeles Clippers but coach Frank Vogel was encouraged by what he witnessed. "I feel like we have a really good team, and we should be optimistic we're going to have a really good season," Vogel told reporters the following day. "We got outplayed last night, and there are some things we can definitely do better, and I'm very encouraged by what we can be." The Jazz opened their season with a 100-95 victory on Wednesday as star shooting guard Donovan Mitchell scored 32 points on 14-of-22 shooting and collected a career-best 12 rebounds. Mitchell became the fourth different player in Utah history to have at least 30 points and 10 rebounds in a season opener, joining Hall of Famers Karl Malone (four times) and Adrian Dantley as well as Carlos Boozer.
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN, AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (Utah), Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles)
ABOUT THE JAZZ (1-0): New point guard Mike Conley suffered through a horrific 1-of-16 shooting performance while scoring five points in his team debut and is hoping his two free throws with 2.1 seconds left to seal the win will spark him for Friday's game. “I’m a big believer in just getting a rhythm," Conley told reporters afterward. "I want that to carry over to the next game. I’m a confidence guy. I’m still confident, and looking forward to the next one.” Forward Bojan Bogdanovic, another offseason addition, scored 16 points in 24 minutes despite missing part of the game after twisting his left ankle.
ABOUT THE LAKERS (0-1): Veteran swingman Danny Green was superb by scoring 28 points - breaking Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's record of 27 for most in a Lakers' debut - and connecting on 7-of-9 from 3-point range. "My teammates did a great job finding me," Green told reporters. "I got into a nice little rhythm, made a couple of lucky ones, but that's not my concern, it's the defensive end. My job is to get us going, get us talking, communicating and making sure we're all on the same page." James wasn't surprised by Green's performance, saying "he's a big time player, he's a big time shooter, and he's a champion. You never have to worry about if he's going to be there every night."
BUZZER BEATERS
1. The Jazz won 13 of the past 16 meetings.
2. Utah backup PG Emmanuel Mudiay contributed 12 points and five assists in 23 minutes in his team debut on Wednesday.
3. Los Angeles F Kyle Kuzma (foot) will miss his second straight game, while PG Rajon Rondo (calf) could play after missing the opener.