A former Denver Nugget came back to haunt his old mates in a 104-98 Nuggets loss to the Los Angeles Clippers at the Pepsi Center last night. Kenyon Martin’s tip-in of a Chris Paul miss with 27 seconds to play gave the Clippers a 98-96 lead, and Martin’s block of a Ty Lawson’s layup on the ensuing trip down court preserved their lead for good. Lawson would end up leading the Nuggets with 24 points on the night. Al Harrington added 14 points off the bench, and four other Nuggets players had 12 points apiece. Paul’s 21 points led the Clippers in their victorious effort. The loss snaps Denver’s two-game winning streak, and combined with Dallas’s win, it drops them back to seventh place in the Western Conference. The Nuggets visit the Phoenix Suns in a crucial battle for playoff positioning on Saturday night.