The Golden Lakes

Another night in the NBA, another awesome game. Whenever one team went on a run, the other responded. This game had it all: intesity? check, drama? check, star power? check. Both teams fought, there were so many gutsy plays in the fourth quarter alone, it would be impossible to recount them all. This was a true gut check game for the Lakers, they were on the road in an extremely hostile enviornment, Denver was outhuslting them for a good portion of the game, and then something clicked. Enough was enough, the Lakers started getting rebounds, they were now the first to the loose balls, and Kobe Bryant just willed the Lakers to a victory, he refused to lose this game and that attitude rubbed off on the rest of team. Most importantly, the Nuggets lost their composure. Although the refs were wildly inconsistent in this game and almost ruined it by not swallowing their whistle, the Nuggets refused to adjust. So much was made about Chauncey Billups' presence on this Denver team, but where was it tonight? Billups struggled shooting and the team unraveled, highlighted by another miscue on an inbound play. Lamar Odom was up in Kenyon Martin's grill and showed Rashard Lewis a thing or two about defending an inbound pass. Last night, I wondered how Orlando would rebound from LeBron's shot, the Nuggets mental state seems to be a lot worse than Orlando's right now. The Lakers outscored Denver 32-18 in the fourth quarter and got physical for once. Had Los Angeles won by going on a scoring spree, the Nuggets would feel much better, but the Lakers beat the Nuggets at their own game. They got physical, they intimidated, and most impressively the ripped Denver's heart out. Carmelo Anthony was on the verge of tears after the game, George Karl's emotions were equally unimpressive. These reactions are premature because it's only game 3, the series is far from over, but Karl and Anthony looked defeated. The Lakers have a chance to virtually end the series Monday night with a win, but throughout these playoffs they have had mental lapses allowing for their opponents to get back in the game or in Houston's case a series.