Nuggets' Timofey Mozgov gets bloodied up on court (VIDEO)

Denver Nuggets center Timofey Mozgov took an errant elbow to the face under the basket in the first quarter of Monday night's game with the Charlotte Hornets and the big Russian looked more like he was subbing for J.J. Watt than playing in the NBA.

After Bismack Biyombo opened the nasty cut above his eye, Mosgov quickly leaned down and covered his face before removing his hand to reveal a gushing stream of blood.

Mozgov wiped it away, but the bleeding increased as he left for the locker room, presumably to be stitched up. The big man eventually reentered the game, but has just a pair of points and three rebounds through three quarters of play.

Phil Jackson prefers Brian Shaw over Derek Fisher: Report

Being spurned by Steve Kerr in the New York Knicks coaching hunt hasn't deterred Phil Jackson from kicking a few other tires on his old coaching bus. But the Zen Master may be setting himself up for another flat if he goes after Brian Shaw — the Nuggets coach who keeps insisting that he is content in Denver.

All the talk these days seems to be focused on Derek Fisher taking over the reins — although he won't comment until the Thunder season is over — and that chatter seems to be coming from the media rather than then Knicks president himself.

Now we might know why.

It seems Jackson prefers Shaw over Fisher, said a source according to the N.Y. Post.

Prying his former assistant from the Nuggets would require the Knicks to pay compensation. That appears to be a bigger roadblock to getting Shaw out of his Denver contract than Shaw’s reluctance to come to New York. It’s unclear whether Jackson has formally asked the Nuggets permission to speak to Shaw.

Jackson hasn’t given up total hope he somehow can woo Shaw from Denver, especially if the Fisher scenario falls through.

Coincidentally, the Nuggets showcased Shaw on the dais of Tuesday’s NBA Draft Lottery. And although e finished his first season in Denver without a playoff berth amid some rumblings the players weren’t thrilled with him. The Nuggets didn’t improve their lottery position and will have the 11th pick.

“I’m happy where I am,” Shaw told The Post on his way out of the lottery room Tuesday night. “I have a job here, so all the speculation that’s out there, that’s just speculation.”

Chris Paul's sweet moves leave Evan Fournier in a spin (VIDEO)

Clippers guard Chris Paul keeps doing things which are clearly don't seem humanly possible. Check out the sweet moves he put on the Nuggets' Evan Fournier Tuesday night.

Just a walk in the park for Paul.

Clippers win, 117-105.

Warriors’ Bogut out indefinitely with serious rib injury: Report

The Golden State Warriors announced Monday that starting center Andrew Bogut is out indefinitely with a serious rib fracture.

The injury puts into question Bogut’s availability for the playoffs, which begin this weekend and it “doesn’t sound like he expects to play again this season or postseason,” according to The Mercury-News.

”I’ve got to be careful, because if it cracks I’m looking at a punctured lung. You’ll see me in the hospital with a tube coming out of me,” said Bogut. ”It’s one of those things people have played through, but this is too close to comfort for me.”

Bogut sustained the injury after getting sandwiched between two players during the fourth quarter of Golden State’s 119-117 overtime loss in Portland on Sunday. He already had some pain in the area after getting elbowed in the ribs by the Nuggets' Kenneth Faried last Thursday. 

The 7-foot Australian exited Sunday's game with less than a minute remaining in regulation and did not return. A post-game X-ray revealed the extent of the complicated injury. Bogut said he can't take deep breaths and is pain anytime he coughs or sneezes — let alone try to run. The normal recovery time is at least six weeks.

Losing Bogut, one of the premier defensive big men in the league, could be a potentially crippling blow, although Golden State was 40-27 (.597) with him in the lineup and 9-4 (.692) without him. Bogut boasts a net rating of +9.1, and the Warriors have performed meaningfully better on both sides of the ball when he’s on the court. Golden State currently boasts the West’s stingiest defense, in large part due to his presence.

Should Bogut miss the postseason, Warriors coach Mark Jackson will be forced to turn to small ball lineups and/or rely more heavily on 35-year-old reserve center Jermaine O’Neal.  

Jackson’s other options include power forwards Marreese Speights and Hilton Armstrong. 

“[The injury] certainly does not make us a better basketball team,” Jackson said.

Denver Nuggets mascot hangs unconscious during pre-game introductions (VIDEO)

Shortly before the Denver Nuggets' game against the Portland Trail Blazers Friday night, the team’s mascot, “Rocky,” was lowered from the ceiling of the Pepsi Center to the floor as part of player introductions.

One problem was that Rocky was noticeably limp while being lowered from the rafters and then laid out on center court in front of the stunned fans. It looked more like an old-style Western lynching than a glorious entrance.

Poor Rocky was apparently unconscious during the whole thing. 

After the eerie entrance, the Nuggets said the person inside the getup wasn't injured and would be fine.

Nuggets mascot was just lowered from the ceiling limp and then just laid down on the floor. Wat pic.twitter.com/3RgWLV4i4c
— Dane Carbaugh (@danecarbaugh) November 2, 2013

Nuggets' Kosta Koufos gets caught with his pants down (GIF)

Kosta Koufos looked like he was somehow pantsed during the Denver Nuggets 115-100 loss to the Golden State Warriors.

While the 7-foot center could only stand in front of the bench helplessly, as his warm-up pants hilariously slip down his legs, the Nuggets team got totally undressed by Stephen Curry as the Warriors sharpshooter lit them up for 22 of his 31 points in the third quarter.

The Warriors lead the NBA first-round series 3-1.

Unleashed Manimal shows the "POP & GO" to Blake Griffin

Blake Griffin usually has his way with most players when it comes jamming down at least a couple spectacular dunks in every game, but Denver Nuggets forward Kenneth Faried was ready for the Los Angeles Clippers' human showcase reel and "The Manimal" even tweeted about it before the game.

"I'm up I'm up I'm up & ready to "POP & GO" 

#leggo #Grind Hard #UnleashTheManimal"

In the second quarter, Faried chased Blake down and swatted away what looked like another addition to the 2012 Blake Griffin highlight reel.

It was only a matter of time before Griffin got revenge and, in the fourth quarter, he got a bit of redemption by slamming the ball over the outstretched arms of The Manimal and through the rim.

For the time being though, Faried must have felt good.

The Clippers went on to defeat the the Nuggets, 104-98, in Denver.

A-Rod's Speeding Ticket Yanked By NYPD

A serious claim, made by sources involved in the New York Police Department's ongoing ticket-fixing scandal, accuses officers of burying a speeding ticket New York Yankees shortstop Alex Rodriguez got in 2009.

According to the New York Daily News, former-Yankees team owner George Steinbrenner was also a beneficiary of  mishandled summonses.

The NYPD ticket-fixing probe has widened in the past few weeks.  Police Commissioner Ray Kelly has extended the probe after the initial drug investigation concentrated on only one precinct but has now mushroomed into a wide-spread scandal.  It now involves over 100 cops and their superiors in various station houses.

Two sources said A-Rod was pulled over for hot-rodding on the West Side Highway around 57th Street two years ago.  He was issued a speeding ticket by a highway cop, but an NYPD sergeant had it disappear.