Getting your player ready...
Temper.
The Nuggets slowly lost their cool. J.R. Smith constantly complained about calls. Kenyon Martin jawed with Kobe Bryant at the free-throw line, and Allen Iverson picked up two fourth-quarter technical fouls and was ejected.
Painting.
Denver’s first five field goals came on jump shots. The Nuggets’ first points in the paint came with 3:23 left in the first quarter on a Marcus Camby dunk. Meanwhile, 10 of the Lakers’ first 15 points came on layups, dunks and short shots in the paint. The Lakers outscored Denver 18-8 inside in the first.
Charity performance.
Denver hit just 23-of-37 free throws (62.2 percent).
Chris Dempsey, The Denver Post
