On January 16, Beijing time, the Lakers played against the Denver Nuggets, and because the Nuggets had league super center Jokic, Vogel had to change the lineup again and put Howard on the starting line-up. The Warcraft did not live up to the trust and played a brilliant performance, but the Lakers were far behind the Nuggets in the half.
In the first quarter, as a blue-collar worker, the Warcraft's performance on the offensive end completely exceeded expectations and overwhelmed the new MVP Jokic. Howard efficiently delivered 11 points and three boards on 5-of-6 in the quarter, with all the rebounds being offensive rebounds. And about teacher 4 out of 3 only 6 points into the account. However, the Nuggets role players played significantly better, although James also scored 8 points and 3 boards in the first quarter, but Westbrook's offensive state was still not good, scoring only 2 points in 1 of 5 in a single quarter, and the Lakers trailed by 5 points in the first quarter.
Entering the second quarter, the Nuggets hit a 15-5 climax to take a double-digit lead, and Jokic began to exert his power, scoring a catch, and hit a beautiful goal in front of Howard with a series of fake moves. Before halftime, Barton scored five straight points, and after Ariza hit a three-pointer, Jeff Green immediately returned the color. At halftime, the Nuggets led the Lakers by 13 points 73-60.
Throughout the first half, the Nuggets scored in double figures, with Jokic sending a comprehensive statistic of 14 points, 9 boards and 9 assists, Jeff Green 11 points, Barton 4 of 4 points 12 points, and Hayland on the bench also contributed 16 points efficiently on 6 of 8. On the Lakers side, James had 15 points, 5 boards and 2 assists, Howard had 13 points and 3 boards, and Westbrook sent 10 points and 3 assists on 4 of 10.