Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference, the Indiana Pacers advanced past Orlando to win their series 4-1 while the injury-plagued Chicago Bulls showed grit in beating Philadelphia to cut their deficit to 3-2 in their first-round playoff series.
In Los Angeles, the Nuggets came close to squandering a 15-point lead in the final quarter but escaped to trail 2-3 in their series after Kobe Bryant and Ramon Sessions both missed three-point attempts in the dying seconds.
The poor-shooting Lakers trailed for almost the entire game and were 15 points behind with 6.35 left before Bryant closed the gap to just two after pouring in three consecutive three-pointers.
With the Lakers down 99-96, 14-time All-Star Bryant narrowly missed a three-pointer with 20 seconds remaining and the Nuggets narrowly held on to win in front of a vocal sell-out crowd at Staples Center.
Bryant finished with a game-high 43 points but the Lakers ultimately paid the penalty for wayward shooting over the first three quarters, finishing with a percentage of just 38.9 from the field.
Andre Miller led the way for the fast-paced Nuggets with 24 points and center JaVale McGee weighed in with 21. The Western Conference quarter-final series shifts to the high altitude of Denver for Game Six on Thursday.
In Atlanta, the Hawks survived a careless turnover in the final seconds to scrape past the Boston Celtics 87-86.
FINAL SHOT
Josh Smith had his inbounds pass stolen by Boston's Rajon Rondo with 10 seconds to play, but the Celtics' point guard failed to get a final shot off as he raced down court before losing the ball with Al Horford closely guarding him.
"It's about time it went our way," Horford told reporters. "Rondo made a great steal but we hung tough and didn't let them get a shot off in the end."
The tense win helped the Hawks cut their best-of-seven Eastern Conference first round series deficit to 3-2 with Game Six in Boston on Thursday.
Rondo finished with 13 points and 12 assists despite the late miscue. Horford, playing in just his second game since missing nearly four months with a torn pectoral muscle, had 19 and 11 rebounds to lead an Atlanta starting five that all scored in double-figures.
< span id="midArticle_13">In Chicago, Luol Deng stepped up with 24 points, Carlos Boozer added 19 and 13 rebounds as the Bulls slogged through a less than pretty 77-69 triumph.
Playing without injured NBA Most Valuable Player Derrick Rose and ailing Joakim Noah, Chicago avoided elimination and forced Game Six on Thursday in Philadelphia.
In Indiana, the Pacers were buoyed by 25 points from Danny Granger to blowout the Magic 105-87 and achieve their first playoff series win since 2005.
"A huge step for our franchise," Indiana coach Frank Vogel told reporters. "We're excited about where we're at as a basketball team."
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