DENVER — The Los Angeles Lakers entered the Western Conference Finals drowsy, distressed and disjointed. Thanks to the Denver Nuggets, they're heading back to the NBA Finals with their old L.A. swagger.

Behind Kobe Bryant's 35-point, 10-assist performance, the Lakers dispatched Carmelo Anthony and the pesky Nuggets with a 119-92 victory in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals on Friday night.

That set up half of the glamorous Kobe-LeBron matchup that Madison Ave. is hoping for, but LeBron James will have to lead Cleveland to two more wins over Orlando to keep it from being a Kobe-Superman pairing against Magic star Dwight Howard instead.

The Lakers are back in the finals for the second straight year and the 30th time overall.

Bryant suggested the Nuggets helped the Lakers play to their potential.

"Denver is a great team, very skilled at all positions," he said. "Strong inside. Strong on the perimeter. Huge problem for us. And because of that, we had to elevate our level as a unit. And if we didn't do that, we'd be going home early."

Instead, it's the Nuggets whose season ended early.

"Forget about tonight. Tonight wasn't Nuggets basketball," coach George Karl said.

At least not the brand the Nuggets had been playing this season — a season in which they became a true contender for the first time since 1985, back when they wore rainbow uniforms.

Before the game, Karl said all the talk about the officiating had obscured what was a pretty good series — at least until the finale.

"In a lot of ways, we've helped them put their pieces back together and they've helped us grow up faster," he said.

The Nuggets still have some growing to do.

"I thought we were the better team," Kenyon Martin said. "But we're not moving on."

Bryant wasn't a one-man band. He got plenty of scoring help from Trevor Ariza, Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom as the Lakers shot 57.3 percent from the field.

These Lakers, who are seeking the franchise's 15th title, are a more grizzled group — but also more bruised and battered — than the one that fell to Boston in the finals last year. Instead of cruising through the West this time, the Lakers survived an arduous seven-game semifinal series against Houston and another test against Denver.

The finals begin Thursday, at Los Angeles if Orlando wins, and at Cleveland if the Cavaliers prevail.