Lakers' Whining Won Game 5

The NBA fined Lakers coach Phil Jackson $50,000 for complaining about the officiating in Game 4 of the Western Conference finals, but the frustrated Nuggets think it was money well spent. They got whistled 30 times in last night's Game 5, and they’re angry, reports Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post. “Every player in my locker room is frustrated,” said coach George Karl.

“The Lakers paid $50,000 to win that game,” complained one player. Kiszla agrees: "Jackson yanked the NBA with his trademark manipulative tactics, and the refs jumped like puppets on a string." Asked if he had indeed been trying to plant seeds in the officials’ heads, Jackson laughed. “I’m a gardener,” he said. “I like planting seeds … constantly.” (More Denver Nuggets stories.)