Whether they admit it or not, the Los Angeles Lakers have had their next game circled on the calendar since it was first announced in August. Yes, it’s only November, but on Saturday, November 23, the Lakers will face the Denver Nuggets for the first time during the 2024-2025 regular season.

As the Lakers prepare for their first meeting with Nikola Jokic and company, first-year head coach JJ Redick has a golden opportunity to solidify the arrival of a new culture in Los Angeles.

Denver and Los Angeles have met in the playoffs three times since 2020. The Lakers got the best of their rivals in the first game, with franchise player Anthony Davis helping to contain Nikola Jokic and send the purple and gold to the NBA Finals. as the final championship.

Unfortunately, the Nuggets have eliminated the Lakers from the playoffs in each of the past two seasons, winning a combined eight of nine postseason games.

Davis and LeBron James exacted a measure of revenge at the 2024 Summer Olympics when they led Team USA past Jokic and Serbia to reach the Gold Medal Game. However, Los Angeles still operates in Denver’s shadow, and that won’t change until they overcome their enemies when it matters most.

A win in November won’t necessarily change the narrative, but it could give the Lakers the confidence to believe they can finally beat the Nuggets when they meet in the playoffs for a third straight season.

Denver and Los Angeles enter this game in similar situations. Both teams have MVP candidates in Davis and Jokic, as well as a deep and talented starting lineup with young players operating in crucial roles off the bench, including the Nuggets’ Peyton Watson and the Lakers’ Dalton Knecht.

They are also within striking distance of each other in the standings at this early point in the season, further illustrating how important this match really is.

Denver is on a walking 50-win season with Jokic on the court, with 110 wins between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. Los Angeles, meanwhile, is looking to reach that elusive plateau for the first time since its 52-30 win during the 2019-2020 championship season.

Unfortunately, both teams’ ambitions have been affected by injuries, with defensive specialists Aaron Gordon and Jarred Vanderbilt both missing extended periods.

Despite all the caveats and comparisons, there is only one fact that is truly essential: Denver has Los Angeles’ number. The Nuggets have won four consecutive regular-season games against the Lakers, as well as 12 of the past 13 meetings between the two teams, including the playoffs.

That’s an astonishing level of dominance that Redick and the Lakers need to put an end to as quickly as possible — and there may be no better opportunity to do so than on Saturday.

Denver is coming off a Friday meeting with the Dallas Mavericks, meaning Los Angeles is catching up on the second leg of a back-to-back. That puts an incredible advantage in the Lakers’ favor, which should be leveraged to set a strong tone for the rest of the season.

Los Angeles will play Denver four times during the 2024-25 regular season, but with the rematch not until Feb. 22, it’s as close to a must-win game as it will be in November.