Nuggets fans wouldn't stop heckling the visiting Raptors about the whopping 81 points the Lakers' Kobe Bryant laid on them the night before. So, when one yelled "Kobe!" at him in the closing minutes of Monday night's game, Toronto's Jalen Rose had finally heard enough. According to The Associated Press, Rose quickly silenced him with this stinging reminder of the NFL Broncos' still-fresh playoff ouster and their turnover-plagued quarterback:

"Plummer!"

Pass the merit badge

Something tells us that the words "Boy Scout" appear prominently on the résumé of the Packers' new offensive quality-control coach, Ty Knott.

Reel obnoxious

A pro fisherman, Michael Iaconelli, ranked sixth on GQ magazine's list of 10 most hated athletes — but it wasn't for lack of trying to be like the No. 1 guy, banished Eagles receiver Terrell Owens.

As fellow angler Denny Brauer told the magazine: "When he catches one, you've got the fist pumps, the running around the boat, the lying flat on the boat. He'll stare at the fish, yell at it, point at it. He'll shake his finger at it."

Fortunately, Sharpies can't write on slimy fish scales.

(Oh, yes, the entire top 10: 1, Owens; 2, baseball's Barry Bonds; 3, auto racing's Kurt Busch; 4, baseball's Curt Schilling; 5, Kobe Bryant; 6, Iaconelli; 7, basketball's Bonzi Wells; 8, golf's Phil Mickelson; 9, baseball's A.J. Pierzynski; 10, tennis' Lleyton Hewitt.)

He'll take the stands

LeBron James' mother pleaded not guilty to charges of driving while intoxicated and disorderly conduct last Friday in Akron, Ohio.

But just in case she can't line up a good lawyer, Antonio Davis has reportedly offered to come to her defense.

Talking the talk

• Ian O'Connor of the (Westchester, N.Y.) Journal News, on Bryant, who has combined for 143 points and just two assists in his two highest-scoring games this season: "His idea of a perfect three-on-one fast break [is] run by me, myself and I."

• Peter Schmuck of the Baltimore Sun, on the outspoken ex-stripper wife of new Orioles pitcher Kris Benson: "One suspects that if Anna Benson were married to another athlete, say Antonio Davis, he'd be charging into the stands every other game."

• Ex-Dodgers pitcher Joe Moeller, as quoted in the Los Angeles Times, on the team's 1966 starting rotation: "We had Koufax, Drysdale, Sutton and what's-his-name. I was what's-his-name."

No points in the paint

With his 76ers struggling and tempers flaring, coach Maurice Cheeks canceled last Thursday's practice and sent his squad to a paintballing joint for a little team bonding.

Alas, rumor has it the players wouldn't stop bickering over shot selection.

Dwight Perry: 206-464-8250 or dperry@seattletimes.com

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