Nuggets eliminate Lakers, Thunder seal Pelicans sweep

MIAMI — Jamal Murray nailed a last-gasp jump shot as the defending champion Denver Nuggets sent LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers crashing out of the NBA playoffs with a series-clinching 108-106 victory on Monday.

Murray’s sublime go-ahead bucket with four seconds remaining settled another pulsating battle between the Western Conference rivals and wrapped up a 4-1 series win for Denver, who now face Minnesota in the next round.

Murray finished with 32 points while teammate Nikola Jokic had 25 points, 20 rebounds and nine assists as the Lakers’ bid to overturn a 3-0 series deficit came up short in front of 19,861 fans at Denver’s Ball Arena.

NBA icon James meanwhile finished with 30 points, 11 assists and nine rebounds to lead the Lakers scoring in what was the final act of his 21st season in the NBA.

Afterwards, James declined to be drawn on his future plans, saying he would now spend time with his family before preparing for this summer’s Olympics.

Elsewhere Monday, the Oklahoma City Thunder sealed a 4-0 series sweep of the New Orleans Pelicans to book their place in the NBA playoffs second round.

Western Conference top seeds Oklahoma City finally got the better of New Orleans with a late scoring burst in the fourth quarter to complete a 97-89 road victory in Louisiana.

Derrick White scored 38 points as the top-seeded Boston Celtics dominated Miami 102-88 on the road to take a 3-1 lead in their best-of-seven series.