With the preseason having passed, NBA Opening Week has arrived, and for the Los Angeles Lakers that means a pair of games with the Portland Trail Blazers and Houston Rockets. The Lakers tip off the 2018-19 season on Thursday at the Moda Center.
It’s just the fourth time in NBA history that the Lakers and Trail Blazers will meet in what’s a season opener for both teams. The last came in 2008, when Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol led the way in a 97-76 rout at Staples Center.
When the Lakers take the court Thursday night it will officially mark the start of a new era, one with LeBron James at the lead.