Nikola Jokic scored a season-high 34 points and had 14 assists, Aaron Gordon added 20 points and the Denver Nuggets never trailed in a 130-124 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Monday night.

Russell Westbrook was a soldier for the 2024-25 Nuggets squad, and he received a hero's welcome in his return to Ball Arena with the Kings.

Zach LaVine led the way for the Kings in Saturday’s victory as he ended the game with 31 points and four rebounds while DeMar DeRozan recorded 29 points and four rebounds. While both teams are seeking a key victory in Monday’s game, both squads may be without multiple key players due to injuries.

The Trail Blazers beat the Nuggets 109-107 in their first NBA Cup matchup, but Denver undoubtedly had opportunities to pull out a win in Portland. Most notably, a couple of costly officiating decisions in the closing seconds completely shifted the game.

If he were to suit up for the Nuggets on Friday night, Murray would likely be matched up against Portland's All-Defensive Team-caliber forward Toumani Camara, a one-on-one battle that would call for the Nuggets' 28-year-old guard to exert plenty of energy and use extra force in an effort to receive open looks.

For one night, the Nikola Jokic jerseys had some competition at Ball Arena. You could tell from the moment No. 5 in white checked into the game that this wasn’t a typical visitor’s welcome in the Mile High City.

The Denver Nuggets couldn't get it done for their first NBA Cup game of the year vs. the Portland Trail Blazers on Halloween night, falling in narrow fashion 107-109 as a result of some critical last-second unravelings, and thus, leaves the Nuggets 3-2 as they head back to Denver for an extensive four-game home stand.

Following the game, the NBA confirmed Jokic’s latest feat on social media, announcing he became just the fifth player in league history to open a season with back-to-back triple-doubles. He joins Russell Westbrook, Magic Johnson, Jerry Lucas and Oscar Robertson on that exclusive list.

Nikola Jokic is on a historic run to begin the year, which continued in the Nuggets' demolition of the Pelicans.

The Nuggets and Kings are set to face off at 7:00 p.m. MT on Monday in Denver. This article was originally published on www.si.com/nba/nuggets/onsi as Nuggets Upgrade Two Starters' Injury Status Before Kings Game.