NBA: Lakers face Clippers in battle of LA; Raptors take on Pelicans

NBA is back, and it looks totally different from previous edition with a slew of tweaks and high-profile trades. 74th season of NBA championship kickstarts on 23 October as California bigwigs Los Angeles Clippers face Los Angeles Lakers and defending champions Toronto Raptors battle it out with a new-look New Orleans Pelicans.

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Fans in India will be er to watch upcoming season after witnessing live action for first time as NBA pre-season games between Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers were held in Mumbai early in October.

Lakers vs Clippers

Pundits and fans alike reckon upcoming season will be most thrilling of m all, with eight reigning all-stars changing ir allegiance, which is most in a single NBA off-season. highly-anticipated move of Anthony Davis pairing up with LeBron James at Lakers makes m strong title contenders this season. What's more? Davis could be a contender for NBA MVP Award.

26-year-old Davis is arguably on verge of entering his prime and is determined to prove himself as one of best players in league. Meanwhile, his teammate LeBron is poised to pass former Lakers legend Kobe Bryant for third place in NBA’s all-time scoring list, only to trail Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone.

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However, realising threat posed by ir neighbours, Clippers have acquired services of Kawhi Leonard from Raptors and Paul George from Oklahoma City Thunder, leaving ir fans with expectations like never before. Leonard is a two-time NBA defensive Player of Year and Geroge was finalist in last season’s award, duo will make Clippers defense formidable. However, George is set to miss initial matches as he is nursing a shoulder injury. 
 

READ: NBA 2019-20: Golden State Warriors' Profile And Season Preview

Raptors vs Pelicans

Defending champions Toronto Raptors became first n-American team to win NBA title last season. ir story will motivate or underdog teams to make ir mark in NBA history. 2019 season was best stretch ever for Raptors. ir six best regular seasons have all come in last six years. ir opponents on Wednesday, Pelicans have looked to build ir team around   1 overall draft pick Zion Williamson. 19-year-old, though, will t feature in Pelicans line-up during start of season as he is sidelined due to a knee injury. ir team will have to work hard to cope with departure of Davis to Lakers also.

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