Lakers Vs. Nuggets Live Game Blog

Thoughts before the game:

First and foremost, if this game gets down to crunchtime, whoever is being guarded by Trevor Ariza needs to draw him as far away from the pass as possible.

J.R. Smith will shoot threes. Chauncey Billups likes to pull up for threes. 'Melo needs to lay off the threes, if only to give Denver the penetration and free throws they so desperately need. It also provides offensive rebounding opportunities for guys like Chris "Birdman" Anderson, Nene and K-Mart.

If just one of the trio of Bynum, Farmar, or Vujacic shows up tonight, the Lakers will win.

I'm predicting Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy will heatedly disagree on at least four points tonight.

After watching the Cavs/Magic game last night, I can't help but think Delonte West belongs on the Nuggets. Feisty, opposing players dislike him, and he's covered in tattooes...he's made for Denver.

I'm torn between play-by-play guys. Mike Breen's "BANG!" on a dagger three is priceless. Marv Albert's "YES!" is timeless. Kevin Harland's "OOOOHHH!" is awesomeness.

ESPN showed some of the pre-game speeches by coaches. Apparently both Phil Jackson and George Karl think it's "their night."

The Nuggets' jumbotron montage doesn't seem so jumbo after seeing the Lakers' video on those huge sheets that drop from their jumbotron all the way to the floor...

1st Quarter:

Right before tip-off, the camera goes to Mike Breen, Jackson and Van Gundy. Instead of sitting between Jackson and Van Gundy, Breen has opted to sit on one side. Smart move.

The best thing about an overachieving or first-time playoff team? Their home crowd. It's the only time NBA fans come close to college fans.

It took 14 seconds for Bryant to get to the free-throw line. Anthony bricks a three. Not a good sign for Denver...

10:40- Martin accidently banks in a shot for Denver's first points. On the other end he fouls Ariza. Even though he missed both, L.A. will win if this inside-outside disparity keeps up.

10:08- Bynum already has an offensive rebound and a hoop. Phil Jackson is trying not to express the "Finally!" going through his head.

9:02- Denver's energy is right where it needs to be. K-Mart already has a dunk, and now Nene flushes one off of his second offensive board. It's like they suddenly realized Bynum is soft. Nuggets lead 8-3.

7:28- Bynum with a soft dunk from Pau Gasol. Billups counters with a jumper. Are the Lakers calm because they're poised or because they lack the energy? I'm leaning towards the latter.

6:00- Nene's eating up the boards(6), but 'Melo's denting the rim with his bricks. Breakaway dunk for Jones. Timeout Lakers, with Denver leading 12-5. Jackson will probably tell his team in his calm, philosophic voice that it's not advisable to allow half of Denver's points off of dunks.

5:16- Kobe gets the ball right out of the timeout, but the Nugs are making him pass. Fisher lucks out with an unintentionally banked floater.

4:24- Nugs up 15-9. K-Mart looks so awkward whenever he scores. Watching him score should be every Lakers' fan's biggest annoyance.

3:48- Ariza picks up his second foul. Denver can only pray he fouls out before a late-game inbounds scenario. Odom in for Bynum. Watch the Lakers go on a run. Nugs up 16-9.

3:17- I just rememebered Nene means "baby." That's two players in the postseason whose names or nicknames include the word "baby." The NBA, where babies happen.

2:51- Nugs up 17-11. There's no need for Walton to look flabbergasted for being called for a foul on Anthony. He's a white bench player guarding a superstar. It's a given. The Lakers' shots aren't falling, while Denver has gone almost exclusively inside after the first minute.

*I'm debating if I like the "Where Amazing Happens" commercials showing old-school highlights, but do it piece-by-piece starting with an empty gym. I could do without the empty gym. Just show the original highlight with the piano music playing. There. Debate over.

2:16- Gasol with the sick block, and Bryant gets to the line on the other end. Those two will get it done. Before that, Shannon Brown missed an open jumper. Everyone but Gasol and Bryant is a question mark.

1:54- Nugs up 18-13. K-Mart fell down while trying to dribble, and called a timeout in the ensuing scrap. I don't know why. He can get up higher than anyone else out there. Take the jump ball and don't waste the timeout.

1:44- Birdman gets his first offensive rebound, and the crowd responds. That board came off of another 'Melo miss, who is officially ice-cold. K-Mart's free throws put Denver up seven.

:58- Odom called for a moving screen. A fruitless trip by Denver leads to a Bryant jumper. Then Bryant hits a floating banker at the buzzer. End of first, Denver leads 22-19. Other than Bryant, L.A. isn't showing the seize-the-moment attitude they promised they would. Shocker.

*I don't know who has the bigger crush on who: Mark Jackson on Kobe Bryant or Van Gundy on Yao Ming. It's a serious toss-up.

2nd Quarter

11:44- J.R. Smith with the sick penetration and alley-oop to Anderson. If he swapped the amount of times he did that with the amount of times he takes a bad three, Karl wouldn't take him off the floor so often.

10:24- Birdman with the swat. Fans are delirious. They love their Birdman. They adore him. They worship him. And with so few players who play just to do the dirty work, they should. Nugs up 28-19.

9:17- Smith gets the offensive rebound (Nugs are killing them on the boards) and the nifty layup. Denver just wants it more. On top of that, with no Kobe on the floor, the Lakers are putting zero points on the board. Nugs up 30-19, timeout Lakers.

8:51- Kobe's back in, and right away posts up and dishes to Farmar for the three. Lakers can't get a stop though, and give up a layup by Kleiza. Kleiza follows it up with a three, Nugs by 13. If defense wins championships, the Lakers won't win.

7:30- Another Nene dunk, assist to J.R. Smith. Smith must've been hanging out with Billups lately. It's rubbing off. It's contagious, and not in a negative or sick way.

6:45- Even J.R. Smith dishing to Nene for another dunk can't stop the Nuggets' fans tangible worry over 'Melo limping off the floor. Bryant pours in some lemon juice with an and-one fadeaway. Nugs up 39-29.

6:05- Smith is playing out of his mind. Seriously, 'cause his mind is not (or was not) capable of such intelligent play. 'Melo comes back out the floor, temporarily dispelling the community's fear.

*This is where Kobe's lack of a bond with his teammates comes into play. If his teammates liked him, they'd listen to him if he were to call them out right now. If Kobe tries to instill a sense of urgency, though, they'll bitterly take it in but not alter their play.

4:43- J.R. Smith follows a Fisher three with a two of his own. Nugs up 44-32. Smith is so geeked over his own play that he tries to dunk over the back of Kobe on an offensive board. Baby steps, J.R., baby steps.

* First Jackson/Van Gundy disagreement: Van Gundy says that dunk-attempt shouldn't have been a foul on J.R., since Kobe didn't block out. Jackson is mortified at Van Gundy's disrespect.

3:01- Good thing the Nuggets bench showed up 'cause Carmelo Anthony is still M.I.A. Bricks, turnovers, injuries, no transition defense...the dude is out like Terminator's number-one spot on the movie charts.

2:53- Lamar Odom just got snuffed out by K-Mart. Goodness. And of course, Kobe deflates the entire arena with a three right after the fact. He's seriously the only Laker who wants to win this thing tonight.

2:16- Derek Fisher just outjumped K-Mart in a jump ball. If the Nugs win, his teammates will never let that one go. If they lose, he'll be secretly mocked by everyone in the league. Nugs lead is slowly dissipating, 46-40.

1:00- 'Melo breaks open the rim with a dunk from a J.R. feed. Nugs up 50-42. Timeout L.A., and 'Melo goes to the locker room. I don't think Denver can win without him, unless J.R. has one of his 15 to 20-point quarters.

:37- Renaldo Balkman just entered the game. Somewhere Isaiah Thomas is sitting in a basement beaming, saying, "I drafted that kid!"

:00- I'm trying not to fall out of my chair. Balkman just got blocked twice. Only an Isaiah Thomas draft pick would get blocked twice his only 37 seconds of playing time.

First Half Thoughts:

Denver's energy is efficiently off the charts, as opposed to Game 3's emotional overdose. Their passing and teamwork is enabling them to dissect the Laker's defense, helping balance out 'Melo's ineffectiveness in the first half.

J.R. Smith just realized crazy-good passes are even cooler than crazy-bad shots that happen to go in. It's a Denver revelation.

Bryant has 18 points, and the rest of the Lakers have a reason to look in the mirror and ask themselves if they really want to win. It's times like this where I don't blame Bryant for getting irritated with his teammates.

Is it at all feasible that a frontline of Gasol, Bynum and Odom should be getting outhustled by the likes of Nene (a baby), the Birdman (a former drug addict) and K-mart (a surgically repaired version of his former self)?

Breen, Van Gundy and Jackson are sitting in front of a semi-transparent ESPN wall/logo setup. I'm assuming it's to shield out the annoying fans who would clamor for idiotic air time and brag to their friends about it.

3rd Quarter

11:22- K-Mart's forced to air-ball a three on one end, Pau Gasol gets an and-one on the other end. Lakers back only four. Van Gundy tried to justify comparing Gasol's move to Dr. J by overlaughing at his own creativity. He's still going five minutes later. Then he finally gave up.

10:30- Anthony misses a three right after Van Gundy starts up his Dr. J rant again. Mark Jackson's game-serious tone is doing its best to make Van Gundy look foolish.

9:16- Gasol with the hook. At least Van Gundy didn't compare him to Kareem, or I would've strangled the tv. Odom's already waiting to check in. Nene's fouled on the offensive board. Odom's in for Bynum. That was fast. Nugs up four.

8:07- Billups blows by Odom and gets the and-one on Gasol. You know, if Cleveland swapped one of its defensive-minded role players for one of the Lakers' offensively minded role players, both teams' problems would be solved.

*They just showed a chart of Billups' conference finals appearances with those of four different Lakers. Magic, Kareem and Michael Cooper I get it. Kurt Rambis? That's an example of being along for the ride...

7:29- Billups' free throws are throwing off the Lakers' rythmn. Nugs up 64-55. Bryant misses, Billups with a pull-up. Sickening memories of the '04 Finals are flashing through Phil Jackson's head.

6:15- Nene with another offensive board and a putback. Where are Gasol and Odom?Nugs up 12. Kobe answers with a three. Nene tips another offensive board to Martin for the atrocious-looking floater. Nugs up 11 with 5:04 left.

4:40- Odom gets an offensive board but blows the putback. I feel like I'm watching the Lakers from the Kwame Brown Era: Kobe and a whole lot of nothing.

3:54- Jones has gotten under Bryant's skin. Replays showed Jones did a seemingly intentional trip earlier, but Bryant has to be careful not to get a technical with the seven-technical rule=suspension in the postseason.

2:39- Birdman flies for the jam off of a missed K-Mart layup. Nugs up 74-63. Nene and K-Mart already have double-doubles. This is a pathetic showing by the Lakers' frontline, which was supposed to be their biggest advantage over anyone else in the playoffs.

* Is it just me, or does the Birdman look like a taller, tattooed version of Christian Slater? Seriously. I keep picturing him as a cutting edge Will Scarlet.

1:54- The Birdman just took a three. Luckily, it was just as accurate as Vujacic's following attempt. You can guess what that means. Meanwhile, Jackson and Van Gundy are still up in arms about Jones' attempted trip of Bryant. They're calling for his supsension, head, you name it. Don't touch Jackson's crush.

1:08- J.R. nails the three. Bryant misses one. Of all the scenarios on a night when 'Melo is ice-cold, George Karl could never have hoped for this. Nugs up 11.

:00- Nugs up 77-66. The Lakers have been maddeningly inconsistent on offense. Kobe gets his when he posts up or drives to the hole, but then he goes away from that in favor of long threes. Pau hits two in the paint, and then doesn't touch the ball again. Where is Phil Jackson? Is he too focused on how disgusted he is with Andrew Bynum? Is he lecturing the rest of the reserves? What is he coaching?

The Nugs are the Laker antithesis. They're playing spirited defense, they're getting any offensive rebound they want, and everyone is chipping in on offense on a night when 'Melo is sick and ailing. Yes, the Nuggets are the most consistent team tonight. There, I said it.

4th Quarter

11:45- Bynum posts up and banks it in. Will they go to him again? Kobe, meanwhile, is still playing, since the Lakers would lose right here and now if he wasn't.

11:02- The Birdman now has double-digit rebounding numbers. When was the last time three players on the same team had double-digit rebounds? Was it against a team with a frontline like the Lakers? The Lakers couldn't even do that against a Yao-less Rockets team.

10:29- Bynum again! Who'da thunk? J.R. is slowly morphing to the old J.R., forcing issues. Jump ball, tip goes to Billups, who gets the and-one. Nugs up 80-70.

10:00- Breen: "Billups for three....BANG!" I love this game.

9:15- Nene with the sweet dish to Smith for the flying jam. Nugs up 14, and Bryant is on the bench for a blow. Lakers lineup: Walton, Bynum, Vujacic, Ariza and Brown. Luke Walton gets called for technical when it's the Lakers' ball out-of-bounds? This is unraveling fast.

9:03- Bynum misses the and-one free throw, but at least he's being aggressive. So is Kleiza, who nails a three, giving the Nugs an 89-73 lead. Loose-ball foul on Walton. Time-out Lakers.

* The mere possibility that there could be a Nuggets/Magic Finals is a health concern. David Stern and ABC officials are losing sleep. Fans are rioting. Kobe will demand a trade and Clevelanders will finally lose their sanity.

8:00- Farmar is in for Brown. Kobe  and Gasol are both sitting. If this game gets any further out of hand, Jackson will save him for Game 5. The camera goes to 'Melo, showing his 2-for-14 line. This is unreal. Meanwhile Odom hits 1-for-2 freebies. Lakers down 15.

7:40- Farmar gets the and-one after the Odom block. Fans are emitting that "don't blow this now" buzz.

7:09- J.R. gets called for a technical. I'm not sure why. Farmar misses the freebie, though. Somewhere 'Sheed is yelling at a tv, "Ball don' lie!" Lakers down just ten.

6:44- 'Melo gets to the line, which is about the only place he's getting anything tongiht. Kobe's back in. Mark Jackson said Chauncey should go up to 'Melo and say, "We don't need you grimacing in pain. Either take us home or sit on the bench." Harsh. Jackson never grimaced? Not once? Even Jordan grimaced. Come on.

6:15- Bynum brings both arms stiffly down on the Birdman, getting called for the flagrant. Even that looked dispassionate. His expression said, "Uh, I shouldn't have done that, huh? I'm in trouble, huh?" Nugs up 14.

* "Oh baby you......you got what I neeeeed. 'Cause you say I'm just a friend. 'Cause you say I'm just a friend."

5:31- 'Melo with a huge spinning and-one in the paint. Nugs up 96-81. Meanwhile Mark Jackson and Van Gundy are lamenting the soft nature of today's NBA, pointing out that Bynum's flagrant was just a "good hard playoff foul." I wish I had a five-dollar bill for every time they've said that this postseason.

4:47- Walton fouls 'Melo, giving him two freebies. Walton's expression: "I know why you called that man. Can't I get a little more respect? Don't you know who my daddy is?"

4:16- J.R. dagger three. Nugs up 14. If J.R. can play like this for two more games, the Nuggets will win the series. You heard it here first.

3:55- Walton just fouled out. I need to find out how many minutes he played...13. Priceless. Ugly drives and freebies are keeping the Lakers somewhat close, but 'Melo's free throws push it back to a 14-point ball game.

3:49- Kobe's officially in ticked-off mode, driving to the whole and forcing the contact. 'Melo takes offense, and gets called for both a personal and a technical. Denver's fans respond: "KOBE SUCKS!" Yeah, he sucks. Please. Now K-Mart and Gasol scuffle. K-Mart gets the technical. These are reputation technicals. Gasol doesn't get a T. Kobe doesn't get one. Lakers within ten.

3:15- This game has turned into an ugly affair of bad fouls and lots of free throws. Billups puts the Nuggets up 104-92. Previous to that, 'Melo got Denver another offensive rebound. Bryant forces it again, gets another foul, stopping the clock and prolonging this now-painful event. Lakers within ten with 3:09 remaining.

3:01- Smith gets fouled. Phil Jackson is telling his team "Don't foul!" George Karl is saying, "Don't foul!" I'm yelling at the tv, "Don't foul!" Denver up 105-94.

2:48- Billups steals the inbounds pass and puts the Nugs up 13. Payback's a female dog.

1:37- J.R. hits back-to-back threes...BANG!

1:19- Nugs up 14. The Lakers will lose. Los Angeles is already steeling itself for the slew of "killer instinct" questions that will hound them until they finish this series.

1:13- Nene with the and-one hook while getting mugged by three Lakers. What baby? I don't see no baby.

1:01- Farmar turns it over, Kleiza misses the layup, Nene misses the putback, Jones gets fouled on the putback. Yeah, that pretty much sums up the game. Benches are cleared. Balkman's back in the game. Isaiah is paying attention now. Nugs up 120-99.

* DJ Mbenga is in for the Lakers. I still can't believe he's a martial arts black belt. He looks so uncoordinated. Then again, if coordination were everything, Nikolaz Tskitishvili would still be in the league.

:00- Game over. J.R. finished with 24 points. K-Mart, Nene and Birdman combined for 42 rebounds. The Lakers as a team had 40.

Thoughts for Game 5:

The Lakers need to go with what's working. If Kobe's the only one who's got it going, then make sure he keeps it going in the paint. If Gasol does something right, don't ignore him. I'm flabbergasted by some of Jackson's coaching, but then again, I'm not as deep a thinker as he is.

If Denver keeps sharing the ball, they're talented enough to overwhelm the Lakers offensively.

The Lakers aren't playing like champions. If they make the Finals, I'll root against them because they don't deserve to be there unless they do a complete 180-degree makeover and win the next two games in overwhelming fashion. Another way to put it: Which team would make the East's champion more nervous?

How bad is 'Melo's injury? If he's still affected by it, will the Nugs' bench step up again? That's the big question with this team: their consistency.