Nuggets-Lakers Preview

By GREG BEACHAM
Posted May 07 2012 7:52PM

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (AP) Kobe Bryant isn't eager to correct a long-standing misconception about his career.

People always assume he's determined to take the Los Angeles Lakers' biggest late-game shots. He's actually just as comfortable setting up his teammates to be heroes by drawing a double-team.

He did it to the Denver Nuggets in Game 4 of their first-round playoff series, and he'd be happy to do it again when the Lakers go for the clinching victory in Game 5 on Tuesday night.

Although he's pretty sure it's an open secret in NBA coaching circles, Bryant acknowledges he's been a decoy and a facilitator for years when Derek Fisher and Robert Horry were his sharpshooting teammates on the perimeter.

Fisher has been replaced by Ramon Sessions and Steve Blake this season, but the Lakers' late-game poise and strategy haven't changed, as evidenced late in the toughest game of their first-round series. In the final minute of Game 4, Pau Gasol set up Sessions' tiebreaking 3-pointer before Bryant fed Blake for the back-breaking 3-pointer and a 3-1 series lead.

"It's great to see them make those big shots," Bryant said after the Lakers' practice at their training complex Monday. "(Other teams) will continue to sit in there and force me to kick the ball out to shooters, as evidenced by Derek knocking big shot after big shot. No matter how many big shots he made, teams still left him."

The Nuggets were paying attention, and the final minute of Game 4 drew attention to what's considered a problem for Denver's balanced roster: There's no obvious leader to take a key late-game shot. But that's not what the Nuggets need, according to Bryant.

"It's not really about having one guy," Bryant said. "It's about having somebody that's going to command double-teams and free everybody up. That's really what it's about."

The Lakers have done it impressively in the last few weeks, particularly while Bryant rested his bruised shin for eight late-season games. They can book a second-round date with Oklahoma City by eliminating Denver for the third time in five postseasons.

"Hopefully we finish them off," center Andrew Bynum said. "I don't want to go back to Denver. ... Closeout games are actually kind of easy. Teams will fold if you come out and play hard."

Bryant scored 69 points in the series' two games at Staples Center, but just 44 in two games in Denver. Instead, he doubled his assists total and encouraged his teammates to step up.

"It's as exciting to see Kobe make a pass at the right time and trust his guys," coach Mike Brown said. "In the past a lot, it's been Kobe, Kobe, Kobe, but we've gone to Pau a lot, to Sessions. The guys have seen me trust second-unit guys down the stretch."

While Denver doesn't have the Lakers' star power, Los Angeles doesn't have the Nuggets' depth. The Lakers are trying to develop their supporting cast during a transitional season from Phil Jackson's strategies to Brown's innovations.

Although the bit players hit several big shots in Game 4, the Lakers' bench has been largely ineffective in recent weeks outside of Jordan Hill, who has developed abruptly into a dynamic rebounder and energy player. Most notably, Matt Barnes is a dismal 1 for 14 on 3-pointers against Denver, failing to step into an increased role during Metta World Peace's suspension.

But the Nuggets' superior bench hasn't translated into success, largely because Denver still can't impose its speedy tempo on the bulky, disciplined Lakers. JaVale McGee and Kenneth Faried have gathered a wealth of knowledge during the first playoff series of their careers, but they're already facing elimination for the first time.

"It's not over, and it's a series that we can win Game 5," Denver coach George Karl said. "We should have won (Game 4) in a lot of ways. We gave a lot of good effort and had a lot of good results, but we got beat by a good team."

Veteran Al Harrington is happy his young teammates still believe they have a chance to shock the Lakers, who never trailed at home at any point in the first two games of the series.

"They're so naive, they definitely do," Harrington said jokingly. "I definitely believe we have a chance. If we can get Game 5, I definitely don't think the Lakers want to come back here to play a Game 6. If we can get Game 5, I think 6 can maybe take care of itself, and hopefully make it a seven-game series."

Of his first playoff experience, Faried said he has learned "it's hard, that it's intense. You've got to bring it every night. You can't have the little mix-ups that you had in March or February. You've got to stay focused. You've got to bring it every night."

The Nuggets hadn't lost perspective on their dire situation, taking a moment during practice in Colorado to chuckle at the memory of the 20-year-old woman who wandered onto the court during Game 4. Faried thanked the woman for giving him a breather while she apparently called for former Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin.

"I gave her his number," Harrington said. "Hopefully they can contact."

---

AP Sports Writer Pat Graham in Denver contributed to this report.

Nuggets avoid elimination, hold off Lakers 102-99

By GREG BEACHAM
Posted May 09 2012 4:10AM

LOS ANGELES (AP) JaVale McGee went out with the attitude that Game 5 was the last game of his life. The other Denver Nuggets played their own mental games, some drawing inspiration from Lakers center Andrew Bynum's comment about how closeout playoff games can sometimes be easy.

The Nuggets went deep into their motivational wells for an impressive win at Staples Center, and not even Kobe Bryant could prevent the Lakers from getting on a plane back to Denver.

Andre Miller scored 24 points, including two free throws with 12.8 seconds left, and Denver survived Bryant's late scoring barrage in a 43-point performance, avoiding playoff elimination with a 102-99 victory over Los Angeles on Tuesday night and trimming the Lakers' series lead to 3-2.

McGee had 21 points and 14 rebounds for the sixth-seeded Nuggets, who barely survived a frenetic finish. Denver had a 15-point lead midway through the fourth quarter against the lifeless Lakers, but Bryant engineered a swift comeback before his final three shots missed.

"I was just glad we didn't go to overtime," Miller said. "There was too much energy in the building. A veteran team like that will fight their way back, and they know how to finish games. We found a way to contain them."

Bryant scored 12 points over the final 4:45, hitting four 3-pointers that trimmed the Nuggets' lead to 98-96 with 59 seconds left. Bryant then missed a potential tying 5-footer and a 3-pointer, but Denver missed two of four free throws before Ramon Sessions hit a 3-pointer with 12.8 seconds left, trimming the Nuggets' lead to one point.

Los Angeles had two more chances to tie after the veteran Miller's free throws, but Bryant and Sessions missed 3-pointers near the buzzer.

"It definitely means a lot, but we're still down, and we still have games to win - in a row, at that," said McGee, who had the best game of his first career playoff series. "It's really hard to stop Kobe, but if we stop the bigs, then Kobe can do what he does, and we'll have a really good chance to win."

Game 6 is Thursday night in Denver. The third-seeded Lakers are one win from a second-round date with Oklahoma City, but they've still got work to do.

Coach George Karl gratefully fed Bynum's offhanded post-practice comment to his players, and they played like a team that isn't going anywhere.

"I've been blessed to win a few series, and it's the hardest thing in the world to win the fourth game," Karl said. "I don't care who you're playing, it's hard. ... His feeling on closeouts is a little different than mine."

McGee threw down a mind-boggling array of dunks and converted alley-oop passes while dominating the Lakers' superstar duo of 7-footers. McGee dunked on a 60-foot alley-oop pass from Miller early in the fourth quarter, and he stared down the Lakers' fans after dunking while getting fouled with 6:35 to play.

Arron Afflalo scored a career playoff-high 19 points and Danilo Gallinari added 14 for the Nuggets, while rookie Kenneth Faried had 10 points and nine rebounds. Miller scored 10 points in the fourth quarter and 17 in the second half, calmly leading his young teammates to the win.

The Nuggets still must win two games to advance to the second round for just the second time in nine years, but they have already accomplished something rare by winning Game 5. Los Angeles had closed out a playoff series on the first try in 11 of its previous 12 opportunities, and the Lakers won 12 of their last 13 closeout games under departed coach Phil Jackson.

"That's true, closeouts can be easy," Bryant said. "Tonight wasn't one of those nights. ... Did it pump them up? Probably. You never want to give anybody bulletin board material, but if you're going to be a champion, you've got to play through things like that."

Bynum had 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Lakers, who lost a closeout playoff game at home for the first time since May 4, 2006, against Phoenix.

The Lakers thought they had taken control of the series with a final-minute rally to win a tight Game 4, but the Nuggets have outplayed the third-seeded Lakers for long stretches of the series. Denver was sharper and more determined from the opening tip in Game 5, while the Lakers played a disorganized, disinterested 3 1/2 quarters until the late rally.

The Lakers never trailed in the first two games of the series, but they never led in Game 5 after their very first basket made it 2-0. Denver enforced its preferred speedy tempo on the walk-it-up Lakers for long stretches, repeatedly beating the Lakers back with fast breaks and sharp passes.

"They were daring us to take outside shots," Lakers coach Mike Brown said. "We were getting shots we couldn't make. But to me, that's not the difference in the game. There were so many things we could have done to win this ballgame. ... I'm more disappointed in our defense and our lack of protecting the paint."

Pau Gasol had just nine points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers, while Matt Barnes scored 11 points.

The Lakers failed to complete their first playoff series victory under Brown exactly one year after Dallas swept the Lakers in the second round of last year's postseason, ending 11-time NBA champion coach Jackson's career - for now, anyway.

Los Angeles' loss means starting forward Metta World Peace will finish his seven-game suspension during the first round. World Peace was banned for viciously elbowing Oklahoma City's James Harden in the Lakers' penultimate regular-season game.

Notes: Before the game, Brown chuckled mirthlessly at the conspiracy theory suggesting the Lakers might tank Game 5 to burn off World Peace's suspension before facing Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. ... Miller was hit with a technical foul in the second quarter after a hard foul on Bynum, who got a T of his own in the third quarter for shoving Faried after a basket. ... Afflalo finally awoke offensively after averaging just nine points in the first four games of the series. ... Fans near courtside included Larry David, British boxer Amir Khan and comedian Harland Williams.

Notebook: Nuggets 102, Lakers 99

Posted Wednesday May 9, 2012 2:25AM

By Dan Arritt, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: The Nuggets should have known it would be their night after Lakers guard Kobe Bryant shot an air ball to start Game 5 of their Western Conference first-round series. The evening only got better from there, as the Nuggets grabbed an early lead Tuesday night and never trailed again, despite a late push from Bryant, holding on for a 102-99 victory at Staples Center and avoiding elimination.

THE STAT: With two 7-footers in the starting lineup, the Lakers should have owned the paint, but were outscored 58-44 by the much more energetic Nuggets. Bench scoring was also a key area in the game. The Nuggets owned that advantage, 50-19.

QUOTE: "I didn't expect us to win by double digits. I thought it would be close. Thank God he missed."
-- Denver coach George Karl on the final shot by Bryant

TURNING POINT: The Lakers made a few pushes after the first quarter, once to tie the game 29-29 with 7:11 remaining in the first half, and the final time when Bryant swished four 3-pointers during a 21-8 run that cut the deficit to two points with 59 seconds remaining. After the Nuggets shot 2-for-4 from the free-throw line over the next 40 seconds, Lakers point guard Ramon Sessions cut the deficit to one with a 3-pointer with 14 seconds left. Two seconds later, the Lakers fouled Denver point guard Andre Miller and he sank both free throws to push the lead back to three. Both Bryant and Sessions got off 3-point attempts in the final seconds but neither fell, sending the game back to Denver for Game 6.

HOT: The two best players for the Nuggets came off the bench. Miller finished with 24 points and eight assists in 28 minutes, his highest-scoring game since Jan. 18. JaVale McGee outplayed Lakers All-Star center Andrew Bynum, finishing with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Bryant overcame a poor start to finish with 43 points on 14-for-32 shooting. He was 5-for-11 from beyond the 3-point stripe.

NOT: The Lakers needed a response from their bench and it just wasn't there. Matt Barnes was the best option and he scored 11 points, but needed 14 field-goal attempts to get there, more than any Lakers starter except Bryant. Barnes has struggled mightily from the 3-point line in the series. He was 1-for-6 from beyond the arc, falling to 2-for-20 for the series. Al Harrington and Ty Lawson continue to be inconsistent for Denver. Harrington was 0-for-7 from the field with three points, and Lawson was 4-for-12 with nine points.

GOOD MOVE: Every time the Lakers made a push during the first three quarters, Karl called a timeout, drew up a play and the Nuggets usually converted to kill the momentum. That's what happened when the Lakers cut the deficit to 66-63 late in the third quarter. The Nuggets came out of the timeout, Miller dribbled the ball at the basket, drew the defense and then dished off to McGee for an uncontested dunk, sparking a 10-2 run to end the quarter.

BAD MOVE: Bynum was just being honest, but he may have given the Nuggets just the bulletin-board material they needed. He told reporters after Monday's practice that closeout games were easy because "teams tend to fold if you come out and play hard in the beginning." It was the Nuggets who came out playing a lot harder than Bynum, who took just eight shots and finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds.

QUOTE II: "Our paint protection on the defensive end of the floor is not good right now. [The Nuggets] don't have many post-up threats, big, strong guys that can back you down ... and they outscore us in paint points, 58-44. Our weak side did not do a good job of having awareness, nor did we do a good job as team protecting that paint."
-- Lakers coach Mike Brown

NOTABLE: Bryant has scored in double digits in 164 consecutive playoff games, second only to Michael Jordan. For the 12th time, he scored at least 40 points in a postseason game. The Lakers hadn't lost a closeout game at Staples Center since May 2006. They are 12-2 in closeout games since 2008 ... Arron Afflalo scored a playoff career-high 19 points to lead all Denver starters.

UP NEXT: Game 6, Thursday in Denver, 10:30 p.m. ET.

• Nuggets: Chandler, Fernandez
• Lakers: World Peace

• Nuggets: Miller
• Lakers: Bynum

• Lead Changes: 1
• Times Tied: 3

• Arena: Staples Center, Los Angeles, CA
• Officials: #25 Tony Brothers, #17 Joe Crawford, #33 Zach Zarba
• Attendance: 18997
• Duration: 2:32