Lakers’ Recovery Goes On : Pro basketball: Jones finds groove and scores 19 along with Van Exel in 104-101 victory over the Nuggets.

The time apparently has come again to keep up with the Joneses. In other words, honeymoon over, NBA.

Whatever break the rest of the league got when red-hot rookie Eddie Jones was lost to a sprained right shoulder in late February, a span that ran all the way up to this week as he struggled to regain his shooting touch, faded a bit more Tuesday night.

Jones made seven of 12 shots, scoring 19 points to tie Nick Van Exel for team-high honors as the Lakers beat the Denver Nuggets, 104-101, before 17,171 at McNichols Arena.

It was a flashback and the Lakers’ hope for the future rolled into one.

Jones’ presence in the starting lineup as the small forward--albeit by default because Cedric Ceballos was ill--had his first solid offensive showing in his six games since returning.

“He’s trying to let me come back slowly,” Jones said of Coach Del Harris. “But he sees I’m back now. I’ve got my legs under me again.”

So Anthony Peeler continues to live on borrowed time, even while averaging a commendable 17.3 points as a backcourt starter the last 24 games. That, along with improved defense, has kept his grip on the job. But it won’t last.

“It’s not fair for a player to lose his position because of an injury,” Harris said. “And yet, there is no good reason to take Anthony Peeler out of the lineup. The guy is playing marvelously.”

But. . . .

“They both know it’s coming,” Harris said, “and they’re comfortable with it.”

Whether the switch comes tonight at Dallas as the Lakers look to set their lineup and fine-tune for the playoffs might depend on Ceballos. Coming off a 33-point game Sunday against Orlando and a 25-point game Friday versus Atlanta, he finally found an opponent who could shut him down.

A fast-food restaurant.

Ceballos said he was feeling fine until eating a burger at the mall after the Lakers arrived Monday afternoon. By the evening, he was sick. By Tuesday, he was sick enough to go to the hospital, the team’s medical staff hoping to treat flu-like symptoms aggressively.

He was there from about 4 p.m. to 6:15, then took a cab to the arena and arrived about 6:25 for the 7 p.m. game. Then he got 14 points and eight rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench.

“I was light-headed the whole time,” Ceballos said. “Kind of a tunnel-vision type of thing. It wasn’t like my body was tired, more like fatigued. Like I was a step off.”

Said Harris: “Somehow, and I don’t know how, he played 24 minutes. I didn’t think he would have any stats. To show you what kind of player he is, he had 14 and eight.”

The Lakers got another bonus. With Dikembe Mutombo’s annual self-promotional tour to be named the NBA defensive player of the year in full swing, Elden Campbell made three-of-four shots in the fourth quarter over and around the Nugget center.

The Lakers even started to isolate Campbell against Mutombo and were rewarded with an eight-foot jump hook from the right baseline, good for a 100-96 lead with 1:27 remaining. The guards took it from there.

When Reggie Williams’ three-point shot got the Nuggets within a point, Van Exel answered with a jumper as the shot clock was about to expire. And when Dale Ellis’ tip-in on the ensuing possession made it 102-101, Sedale Threatt was immediately fouled as Denver tried to stop the clock and made one free throw with 6.6 seconds left.

The Nuggets were done for good when Ellis missed an open three-point shot in front of the Laker bench with about four seconds to go. Van Exel got the rebound, was fouled, and converted once from the line for the final margin.