Deion Sanders on guest list for Nuggets opening night, sources say

The 'Prime Effect' hits Ball Arena for Tuesday's championship banner ceremony

John Leyba-USA TODAY Sports

The Denver Nuggets will kickoff their NBA title defense with a star-studded opening night at Ball Arena on Tuesday.

Deion Sanders is among the list of notables invited courtside to watch the Nuggets take on the Los Angeles Lakers, according to sources. It will likely be the first time he'll meet with the Nuggets after being at CU for nearly a year. Sanders was reportedly invited to be at the NBA Finals in June but had a scheduling conflict that kept him away.

Nikola Jokic says "Sorry" for not knowing about Deion Sanders

Coach Prime has taken the sports world by storm with a few Nugget players making trips to Folsom Field to watch the Buffs play. The phenomenon has brought the best of sports and entertainment to Boulder for a Tinseltown experience on the sidelines.

Sanders even had the entire Philadelphia 76ers team make a rare trip to the Flatirons a few weeks ago. The Eastern Conference contenders were practicing in Fort Collins for a week and rode buses to SALT in Boulder for a fireside chat with Prime. It was a great experience with CU's McDonald's All-American Cody Williams and others tagging along to meet Sixers star Joel Embiid.

Coach Prime even told Embiid to stop "ducking" Nuggets MVP Nikola Jokic and embrace being part of marquee NBA events.

"It's different when we came up. Back in the day, MJ wanted that smoke," Sanders said. "A lot of folks duck that smoke right now." He went on to say, "If Embiid is playing the Joker, I want to see Embiid versus the Joker. I want to see it, alright. He goes and gets it, right? I love the matchup, but I want to see it. That’s why I stayed up.”

The Nuggets open the season with the Lakers before a two-game road stand with the Thunder and Grizzlies over the weekend. Michael Malone's team is currently favored for another NBA Finals run, according to oddsmakers.

Sanders and the Buffs will experience Los Angeles later this week. A matchup with No. 23 UCLA at the Rose Bowl on Saturday evening (7:30 p.m. ET/ TV: ABC)