Walton's career-high 25 points lead Lakers as Bryant rests ankle, By Kevin Ding, Dec. 09, 2006, The Orange County Register, (MCT)
LOS ANGELES - Surprisingly to everyone around the Lakers, who thought he would play in pain again, Kobe Bryant's uniform and all his accoutrements (rib padding, knee sleeve, personalized Nike sneakers, etc.) sat unused in his locker Friday night.
Not surprisingly to Bryant, all around that locker room were smiles.
In the latest testament to Bryant's belief that the Lakers are a much deeper team this season, they handled the Atlanta Hawks, 106-95, at Staples Center and improved the Lakers to 3-0 this season in games without Bryant.
Luke Walton said that upon hearing that Bryant wouldn't be playing, the other Lakers "looked at each other and said we've got to get this one." Walton did as much as anyone to get it.
One game after he admittedly settled for outside shots that wound up being costly misses, Walton performed a passable Shaquille O'Neal impression by plowing to the rim for a team-high 25 points on 10-of-13 shooting.
Bryant called it "a huge step" for the team to execute and win without him this season - but he practically dismissed Walton's performance, saying, "Luke's been playing consistently all season long."
Bryant praised Maurice Evans (22 points) and Jordan Farmar (15), who like Walton had career-high scoring nights. Evans also took on Bryant's burden of guarding the opposition's best player (Joe Johnson), and Lamar Odom shifted to Bryant's guard position to organize the offense.
Odom (15 rebounds, seven assists) had just six points, but shook off his debacle from the previous game and affirmed Lakers coach Phil Jackson's faith in his focus, which Jackson said "has been a lot better" this season. Center Kwame Brown (13 points, seven rebounds, seven assists) was again an interior force, too.
But it was Walton who set the tone by consistently going to the basket and reminding the team it must probe the opposing defense, even without Bryant's easy penetration.
"That's what our goal was," Walton said, "instead of just shooting jumpers like Wednesday night."
Said Jackson of Walton, even though he's just starting his fourth NBA season: "He's definitely a leader."
Walton had his career high in points before the third quarter was over. It's the third time in 19 games he has set a career high.
BRYANT RESTS
Asked before the game how confident he was that Bryant would play, Jackson said: "I haven't even thought about him not playing. So that's how confident I am."
It turned out that Bryant didn't play, even though trainer Gary Vitti experimented with numerous taping techniques to alleviate Bryant's pain.
"We were in there for 30-40 minutes," Bryant said. "It just wasn't cutting it. Last game it felt pretty good prior to the game. Then once the game got started, it felt worse and worse and worse. And if I knew how much it was going to hurt, I wouldn't have played."
Lakers spokesman John Black said Bryant's decision to play on the ankle Wednesday night left it in worse shape than after he initially sprained it. Bryant said his ankle was "a little better" than Thursday, but feared making it worse by playing again: "We erred on the side of caution."
Bryant's rest gives him more of a chance to be ready for a Sunday night game against San Antonio, the Lakers' last home game before playing eight of their next 10 games on the road.
FLASHY FARMAR
Farmar again was a spark off the bench for the Lakers, starting the fourth quarter in scintillating fashion with a three-pointer and then setting up Evans for a three-pointer on the next possession. Those shots extended the Lakers' lead to 82-69.
Farmar played so well that Smush Parker never returned to the game. Farmar made 5 of 6 shots from the field and had four assists in 23 minutes.
"I just try to apply what I work on and what I know I can do on the court," Farmar said.
Cedric Bozeman, Farmar's teammate at UCLA and the former Register prep player of the year, played the final 3:03 of the game for Atlanta.