LOS ANGELES — By Tuesday morning, Michael Malone and his Nuggets players were sick of talking about whatever might linger from the aftermath of last Friday’s showdown against the Lakers, when Los Angeles coach Luke Walton claimed Denver point guard Jamal Murray engaged in “disrespectful” trash talk.
“It ain’t real,” sixth man Will Barton said. “That’s suburban beef, man. Come on. Somebody mad about somebody getting hot and talking a little bit? That happens every day in the NBA.”
Still, the potential “shenanigans,” as Malone put it, for Tuesday’s final meeting between the Nuggets and Lakers at Staples Center added an extra layer of intrigue to a high-stakes contest, as Denver aimed to keep pace in the Western Conference playoff chase.