The Nuggets won their seventh consecutive game against the Los Angeles Lakers, 114-106, on Thursday night at Crypto.com Arena, where Kobe Bryant was honored pregame with a freshly unveiled statue. Here are three observations as Denver (36-16) moved into a two-way tie for first place in the Western Conference with Minnesota.
Nuggets are different in clutch time
The Lakers, flaws and all, are a pretty good clutch team. Their eight wins in games decided by three points or less are the most in the NBA. But the Nuggets boast the No. 1 clutch defense in the league, and it showed up again Thursday night.