I'll be serving up my annual eulogy for the Nuggets season in addition to Game 7 commentary later this afternoon. In the meantime, here is a rundown of what the national media is saying about the end of the thrilling Nuggets versus Lakers first round series ...
Bill Plaschke: Lakers-Nuggets Game 7: Lakers never make it easy, but they escape with win - latimes.com
The Lakers pulled a city off a ledge and themselves back into the NBA championship contention Saturday with an energizing, exasperating 96-87 victory over the Denver Nuggets in Game 7 of a first-round series that should not have lasted this long.
Woody Paige: Nuggets fight to finish vs. Lakers, but 'ain't gonna be no rematch' - The Denver Post
In previous series against the Lakers, the Nuggets always played scared, always played weak, always played from behind. Not this team.
Marc Spears: Metta World Peace answers Lakers' call for help - Yahoo! Sports
Metta World Peace returned from his exile to save the Los Angeles Lakers' season. He helped fight off the Denver Nuggets in a thrilling Game 7 victory, and as he walked off the Staples Center court late Saturday, the crowd roared its approval, granting its conquering hero a standing ovation.
Mark Kriegel: Metta World Peace returns to rescue Los Angeles Lakers from Denver Nuggets in Game 7 - NBA News | FOX Sports on MSN
Good thing for Brown — the Lakers’ prematurely embattled coach — that the suspension was lifted. If not, Denver would be playing in Oklahoma City on Monday night.
Steve Quinne: Baby Blues in the Night - Mile High Sports
On George Karl’s 61st birthday, in the team’s first game seven since the year the eighth-seeded Nuggets knocked off the No. 1 seed Sonics (who were coached by Karl), with a chance to be only the ninth team in NBA history to bounce back from down 3-1 in a series, against a team Denver has never defeated in the playoffs, with all the momentum in their favor, fate, it seemed, was on Denver’s side.
J.A. Adande: Working For Tips, Gasol is Money in Game 7 - Daily Dime - ESPN
It's nights like Saturday's Game 7 that force the issue and serve notice that the two most recent championships in the Lakers' storied history came when Gasol played the way he did Saturday, with his Laker legacy on the line.