Denver Nuggets

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The Hamilton boys — Gary, Jordan, Isaac and Daniel — fell in love with the same girl, according to their mother, Karen. "Spalding," she said. Yes, basketball has become their ticket to college and success. Last week, junior Daniel Hamilton of Bellflower St. John Bosco became the fourth brother to accept a basketball scholarship when he committed to Connecticut. He joins Isaac, a McDonald's All-American who will graduate next month from St. John Bosco and head to Texas El Paso; Jordan, who played for Texas and was a first-round draft pick of the Denver Nuggets in 2011; and Gary, who played at Miami and has been a pro player overseas.

The Denver Nuggets must rank among the most heavily tattooed teams in NBA history -- and that's after trading ink magnet Allen Iverson to the Detroit Pistons last November. . . . Especially unusual are the red lips behind Kenyon Martin's right ear -- a tribute to rapper Trina, his girlfriend. . . .

George Karl led the Denver Nuggets to a team-record 57 wins without a big name on his roster. For that endeavor, Karl earned the NBA's Coach of the Year award on Wednesday. He received 62 first-place votes, followed by Erik Spoelstra of the Miami Heat with 24 votes from a panel of sportswriters and broadcasters. New York's Mike Woodson finished third and San Antonio's Gregg Popovich , who won the award last season, was fourth. The Nuggets were 57-25 -- the league's fourth-best record -- and captured the No. 3 seeding in the Western Conference.

The wait continues. Kobe Bryant will miss his fourth consecutive game when the Lakers host the Denver Nuggets on Friday at Staples Center because of a sore left shin. Although he said Bryant "definitely is improving," Lakers Coach Mike Brown remained noncommital whether he would play Sunday against the Dallas Mavericks. Bryant is currently listed as day-to-day. Bryant missed Friday's morning shootaround to receive treatment on his shin and didn't speak to reporters.  He hasn't worn a walking boot since Tuesday to see how his shin reacted without it. Bryant has tenosynovitis, a condition that causes the tendon sheath to become inflamed and causes pain whenever the tendon slides in or out of it. Bryant, the NBA's scoring leader, suffered the injury when he was kicked in the shin during the first quarter of the Lakers' 88-85 victory March 31 over the New Orleans Hornets.

LAKERS TONIGHT vs. Denver Nuggets T ime: 7:30. On the air: TV: TNT; Radio: 710; 1330. Where: Pepsi Center. Records: Lakers 8-0; Nuggets 4-4. Record vs. Nuggets (2009-10): 1-3. Update: The Lakers have had their problems against the Nuggets in the regular season. Their three losses against them last season were by an average of 13 points. The Lakers lost one of those games in Denver by 26 points. Nuggets All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony still is on the team, but the rumors persist that he wants to be traded.

It's official. The Lakers will host the Denver Nuggets in the first round of the playoffs. The Lakers beat the Nuggets, 3-1 in the season series, though Metta World Peace likely will be absent for the entire series. He'd only appear if the series went to a Game 7. We'll have much more analysis soon. But for now, below is the schedule: Game 1 - @ Staples Center, Sunday 12:30 p.m. PDT (ABC)  Game 2 - @ Staples Center, Tuesday 7:30 p.m. PDT (TNT)  Game 3 - @ Denver, Friday 7:30 p.m. PDT (ESPN)

Some things to take away from the Lakers' 99-84 Game 3 loss Friday to the Denver Nuggets: 1. The Lakers didn't play at the right tempo. It's wasn't the altitude. It was the Lakers' attitude.  After demonstrating through two games they simply needed to play at a methodical pace to ensure a win, the Lakers did the opposite. The Nuggets' victory featured all the ingredients necessary to beat the Lakers. They scored in transition (19 points). The Nuggets converted on second-chance points.

Danilo Gallinari, the Denver Nuggets' second-leading scorer, will be out for the season after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during a 95-94 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday. As Gallinari dribbled down the lane with less than four minutes and 30 seconds left in the second quarter, his knee buckled. Gallinari, who was not touched on the play, fell to the ground and appeared as though he was in immense pain. He had to be carried to the locker room.

If the Lakers make the playoffs, which looks more and more likely, Jerry West has an idea of how they'll do. "I definitely wouldn't want to play them, I know that," West said. "I think they'd have a chance against anyone. " A Hall of Fame player with the Lakers and now an executive with the Golden State Warriors, West mentioned two teams the Lakers wouldn't want to face. The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs were not among them. "I think if the Lakers would have their preference, they probably wouldn't want to play Denver.

DENVER - The Clippers were in search of another signature win, one that could silence some of their critics. They didn't get it. The streaking Denver Nuggets rolled to a 107-92 victory on Thursday night at the Pepsi Center, their seventh win in a row. The Clippers have had recent losses to the Miami Heat, San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder, the teams many consider the best three in the NBA. The Clippers did beat an Indiana Pacers...

Clippers guard Jamal Crawford is not going to play tonight against the Denver Nuggets because of a sore left ankle. Crawford said he rolled his ankle in the second quarter of a game against the Milwaukee Bucks on Wednesday night at Staples Center. He got treatment throughout the day but shook his head no when asked if he could play against the Nuggets. Crawford averages 17.2 points a game, second best on the team. In his absence, Matt Barnes and Grant Hill will play some backup shooting guard for the Clippers.

DENVER - As if George Karl needed another reason to loathe the Lakers. The self-avowed Lakers hater watched video of Metta World Peace smacking Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried in the mouth Monday and came away with a fairly straightforward review: two thumbs down. "I saw it on film and I thought it was - whatever the word is - premeditated," Karl, the veteran Nuggets coach, said Friday about a play toward the end of the third quarter in which no foul was called. The NBA seemed to agree, retroactively assessing World Peace a flagrant-2 foul Thursday.

For the second time this season, the Lakers (28-29) will visit the Denver Nuggets (35-23) on the second night of a back-to-back. The Lakers previously lost the day after Christmas in Denver after winning the first meeting at Staples Center on November 30. The Nuggets also won in Los Angeles on January 6, an especially costly game for the Lakers.  Jordan Hill suffered the season-ending hip injury, Gasol was concussed by JaVale McGee and Dwight...

DENVER - It's been awhile since Dwight Howard's free-throw shooting became a headline. It happened Monday. He made three of 14 from the line in the Lakers' 119-108 loss to the Denver Nuggets, a woeful 21%. He actually made his first two, so you can imagine what happened from there. Everyone knows Howard will never win any free-throw contests. The carnival workers won't be handing out any stuffed animals when he steps up to the basketball booth and opens his wallet. But three for 14 tied his worst of the season when he's had more than 10 attempts.