Denver Nuggets

Once the clock hits 7:30 Saturday night it will mark Metta World Peace's return to the court in Game 7 of the Lakers-Nuggets series, the first game he's played in 20 days after serving a seven-game suspension for throwing a vicious elbow at Oklahoma City guard James Harden. As he sat down before a handful of reporters at the Lakers' practice facility after morning shootaround Saturday, World Peace hardly sounded anxious about his return. "I don't like to rush the time," World Peace said.

Below are five things to take from the Lakers' 96-87 Game 7 win Saturday to the Denver Nuggets. 1. The Lakers' Game 7 victory felt empty. Underneath the frenetic cheers and the entertaining late-game plays masked a glaring reality. The Lakers incredibly underachieved this series and won't have a shot against Oklahoma City in the second round. That's why it's fitting their Game 7 effort provided a perfect microcosm of how they treated their first-round series with Denver. They opened the game with energy.

Things to watch when the Lakers host the Denver Nuggets Saturday night at Staples Center. The Lakers and Nuggets are tied, 3-3. The winner faces Oklahoma City on Monday in the Western Conference semifinals. 1. The outcome will have a significant affect on the Lakers' off-season plans. Magic Johnson raised the ante just a little by saying a Game 7 loss would spur the Lakers to fire Coach Mike Brown after just his first season. Whether that actually happens? Who knows. But consider that Brown, who is making $4.5 million a season, has two more guaranteed years left on his contract followed by a team option.

Game stories -- The Times' Mike Bresnahan notes that Kobe Bryant and Lakers Coach Mike Brown didn't like the effort Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol provided in the Lakers' 113-96 Game 6 loss Thursday to the Denver Nuggets. -- The Orange County Register's Kevin Ding details the Lakers' meltdown. -- The Denver Post's Benjamin Hochman mentions that the loudspeakers at Pepsi Arena played Notorious B.I.G.'s "Goin' Back to Cali. " He also details the Nuggets' Game 6 dominance.

As he stepped foot into the Lakers' practice facility, Kobe Bryant had every right to appear upset. The Lakers suffered an embarrassing 113-96 Game 6 loss Thursday to the Denver Nuggets, setting up Game 7 Saturday at Staples Center. Bryant hardly liked the effort Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum provided; they combined for 14 points on five-of-21 shooting. And, despite nursing intestinal flu symptoms, Bryant suited up and scored 31 points on 13-of-23 shooting. Yet, there Bryant stood outside the trainer's room greeting reporters with a smile.

DENVER — Eighteen years later, the image still torments George Karl. Dikembe Mutombo is lying on the floor underneath the basket at Seattle's Key Arena, his outstretched arms holding the ball above his head in triumph. Mutombo's Denver Nuggets had just come back from a 2-0 deficit to defeat Karl's SuperSonics in the deciding game of their best-of-five series, becoming the first eighth-seeded team to defeat a top-seeded opponent in the first round. "It was probably the worst day of my life," Karl, now coach of the Nuggets, said Friday.

-- The Times' Mike Bresnahan notes that the Lakers didn't talk to reporters Wednesday. That's perhaps a good sign considering Andrew Bynum previously gave the Nuggets bulletin board material by suggesting closeout games are easy. Bresnahan also reports that the NBA didn't have a problem with the Nuggets having a laptop with them during Game 5. -- The Times' Ben Bolch , however, says the Nuggets took offense that the Lakers' whiteboard after their Game 5 loss read, "Pack for 3 games.

Here are five reasons why the Lakers' Game 5 loss Tuesday to the Denver Nuggets should cause plenty of concern around Laker land. 1. The Nuggets suddenly have confidence. On paper, Denver appeared incredibly overmatched. The Nuggets don't have enough size. They don't have enough superstars. They don't have a definitive player that closes out games. Meanwhile, the Lakers have two 7-footers, a fellow named Kobe Bryant and four members of their starting lineup are  linked to the 2010 NBA championship team.

Among the highlights on my breakdown of the Lakers' 102-99 Game 5 loss Tuesday to the Denver Nuggets The Lakers missed a huge opportunity in closing out the series. They would've gotten three days of rest before playing the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Western Conference semifinals. Instead, the Lakers needlessly gave the Nuggets confidence and face a steeper challenge in closing the series out Thursday at Denver. Kobe Bryant almost willed the Lakers to a win by scoring 43 points and proving largely instrumental in mounting a fourth-quarter comeback.