"They got a physical team," he said after Tuesday's practice. "I wouldn't want any of them to take a shot at my back."

Odom's fears are indicative of the growing hostility between the Lakers and Nuggets as the simmering Western Conference finals threaten to boil over with the series tied at two wins apiece entering tonight's crucial Game 5. The past two games featured nine technical fouls, two flagrant fouls, 160 free throws and one memorable postgame tirade.

The NBA fined Phil Jackson and the Lakers $25,000 apiece Tuesday for the coach's public criticism of the officiating following a loss the previous night. Jackson also accused the Nuggets of playing "unsportsmanlike Basketball," singling out Nene for elbowing Luke Walton in the throat and Dahntay Jones for intentionally tripping Kobe Bryant on his way to the rim.

Instead of further fanning the flames on Tuesday by rehashing his disapproval, Jackson remained mostly mum, insisting he wanted to keep the conversation "positive" and focused on Basketball. His players were more outspoken when pressed about whether the Nuggets' physicality had devolved into cheap shots.

"They got away with a few things," Pau Gasol said. "Nobody got hurt, but they could have. That's something the referees should be able to protect us from, because we're not trying to hurt anybody. We're just trying to play hard and compete. But there are some plays out there that reflect some dirtiness and are not acceptable."

The incident that upset the Lakers the most was the one involving Jones, who was assessed a retroactive flagrant-1 foul Tuesday for sticking out his right foot to trip Bryant as the Lakers star blew by him on a third-quarter back-door cut. It's Jones' second flagrant foul against Bryant in two games and his third of the playoffs, one shy of an automatic one-game suspension.

Bryant screamed at the referees and clapped his hands in frustration at the time, but he isn't dwelling on the play, calling it "just good playoff Basketball." Still, it's not the first time someone has accused Jones of unsportsmanlike play: New Orleans coach Byron Scott accused Jones of defending All-Star point guard Chris Paul a "little dirty" in their first-round series last month.

"I'm glad it just was a flagrant and no suspension," Nuggets coach George Karl told reporters in Denver. "I don't think this series is anything but a pretty even NBA playoff series. They're not liking us, we're not liking them, and it's not getting any kinder. It's going to be harder, tougher and meaner."

The Lakers insisted they were less perturbed by the antics of Denver guard J.R. Smith, who thumped his chest and showboated after almost every jumper he knocked down on his way to a team-high 24 points.

"He has the right to do that," Bryant said. "If we need that kind of motivation to get us going, we have issues. That's what you're supposed to do when you knock down a shot."

Odom later had a telling response when asked if he felt the Nuggets' hardscrabble, emotional style had gotten out of hand.

"I wouldn't say the Nuggets," Odom said. "I wouldn't define a team by how one person is playing or two people. It's the playoffs. You've got to expect anything."

Reach Jeff Eisenberg at 951-368-9357 or jeisenberg@PE.com

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Lakers' KEYS TO GAME 5

1. Exploit their size advantageAndrew Bynum and Pau Gasol combined to shoot 78 percent in Game 4, so why did they get only 18 total shots?

2. Stop dribble penetrationDenver's guards repeatedly beat the Lakers off the dribble in Game 4, creating scoring opportunities for themselves or dishing to an open big man cutting to the rim.

3. Attack the glassTwenty offensive rebounds for Denver created easy buckets for the Nuggets and prevented the Lakers from getting stops or creating opportunities in transition.