Shortage of tall players is ending

The big men are coming back, slowly.

Vladimir Radmanovic played Sunday after sitting out 11 games because of a sprained right ankle, and 7-foot center Chris Mihm’s return is appearing on the fringes of the Lakers’ radar.

Mihm has sat out 13 games because of a sore Achilles’ tendon and bursitis in his right ankle but is expected to join the team four or five games into its upcoming nine-game trip.

“His doctor needs to see him for one more appointment,” Coach Phil Jackson said Sunday. “He’s doing some things, some light things right now, but as far as the impact stuff . . . the date was kind of in the middle of our road trip.”

Assuming Jackson required him to go through a practice or two, Mihm would not be ready to play immediately after meeting up with the team but would eventually add depth to a threadbare frontcourt.

Mihm is averaging 4.1 points, 3.7 rebounds and 13.3 minutes a game.

Radmanovic, for his part, was scoreless in five minutes against Cleveland. The 6-10 forward is averaging 7.4 points in 19.3 minutes a game.

“We’ve got to get the shooting back,” Jackson said. “At least he carries the threat of making the shot.”

Mihm’s return will not coincide with the end of DJ Mbenga’s 10-day contract, so the Lakers will probably sign Mbenga to a second and final 10-day contract Wednesday.

“He’s starting to figure things out and what we do a little bit,” Jackson said. “We know that he’s not the answer to [injured center] Andrew [Bynum] -- he’s not going to go out there and get 20 points and 12 rebounds or anything -- but he does work in the game.”

The Lakers will have to decide whether to sign Mbenga for the rest of the season after the expiration of a second 10-day contract, although Mihm is expected back by then.

Not even the Lakers and Cavaliers could escape the effects of the heavy rains that hit Los Angeles over the weekend.

Sunday’s game was delayed 12 minutes when water began dripping from a catwalk high above the court behind the basket by the Lakers’ bench. There was 3:36 left in the first quarter and Cleveland was ahead at the time, 19-18.

It appeared to be a leaky ceiling, but a Staples Center official provided an unexpected explanation.

“Because of all the rain and the fact we had a few leaks recently, we had a roofing company on the roof this morning, inspecting it,” Staples Center spokesman Michael Roth said. “When they got done with their inspections up there, they came down though a catwalk system, took their rain gear off and left it there. It turned out it was their wet clothing on the catwalk dripping through the grates.”

The Staples Center roof is 260,000 square feet, Roth said.

At least one person believed Bryant’s insistence that he didn’t get excited about marquee matchups against players such as LeBron James.

“Whatever Kobe says, I’ll agree,” Jackson said, smiling. “I think Kobe has moved his scope up a little bit. Now it’s more of a team thing, what can I do to hurt this [opposing] team, not to demolish my man or whatever.”

In the end, though, Bryant and James guarded each other numerous times in the fourth quarter.

It’s almost that time of the year.

Jackson typically chooses a long trip to give a book to each player. The upcoming 15-day expedition makes sense.

“We’ll see what I get done the next two days,” Jackson said.

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mike.bresnahan@latimes.com