Glowing Pains

So that’s settled. Kobe Bryant’s most acrobatic moves are the ones he causes in our stomachs.

So now we’re totally confused. Is Kobe Bryant a future superstar, or sideshow? Is he about championships, or confusion?

If you watched the Lakers play Tuesday against Golden State, you would think one thing. (Hint: Michael Jordan.)

If you watched them 24 hours later against Portland, you would think another thing. (Hint: Michael Jordan with a baseball bat.)).

The vastly divergent colors of Kobe’s young career have never been more apparent than in those 24 hours, setting off citywide arguments.

Even Jerry West emerged from a Buss-induced coma Thursday to join the fray.

Yes, West still believes Bryant is going to be a “truly incredible” player.

But, no, an occasional “punitive” time on the bench would not hurt.

Yes, Kobe and Shaquille O’Neal can learn to coexist despite, “professional jealousies.”

But no, it won’t be easy, because West endured the same subtle rift between Elgin Baylor and Wilt Chamberlain.

Yes, Kobe belongs at shooting guard, now and forever.

But, no, he still needs more time to figure the position out.

Yes, West thinks this argument should end with everyone agreeing to be a little more patient.

But, no, he knows it won’t.

“For a 20-year-old kid, Kobe is amazing, just amazing,” West said in a phone interview. “When you see him on top of his game, you think, my gosh, what’s he going to be like when he’s 22?”

Of course, the guy using his savings on this year’s season tickets is concerned about what Kobe is like now.

He still sometimes holds the ball and stops the offense. He still sometimes ignores the set play to take his man one-on-one.

He controlled the final minutes of the comeback victory over Golden State. But he momentarily lost control in the final minutes of the failed comeback against Portland.

He is the master of that famous move known as “no, no, no, no . . . yes!”

He is Dr. Kobe and Mr. Bryant.

The debate simmers.

“Kobe’s biggest problem is that veterans let the game come to them, instead of trying to take it,” West said. “That’s where he makes his most mistakes.”

There, and with his confidence, which West says is not all bad.

“His blessing is . . . he doesn’t think he’ll ever make a mistake or not make a big play,” West said. “But that’s also his burden.”

Not to mention a hassle for teammates who have been around long enough to understand that everybody is human, and wonder why Kobe doesn’t pass the ball more to the other humans.

There have been rumblings that Bryant’s flamboyant play, no matter how much a product of his age, is increasingly alienating some teammates. And not only the results-oriented Shaq.

West has heard the same rumblings, and they remind him of something.

“It’s not a dislike for him, it’s just a professional jealousy,” West said. “I saw that same sort of thing while sitting in a locker room with Elgin and Wilt. I kept thinking, what’s the point? They are both great players. It just doesn’t make any sense.”

So what do you do?

“It’s just growing pains,” West said. “It’s like when you have a little brother. Did you used to fight with him? Do you get along with him now?”

Instead of tying him to the kitchen table or chasing him around the block with rotten eggs, some of the Lakers think it would be enough simply to bench Kobe when he does make a silly mistake.

Sort of like what Mike Krzyzewski would have done at Duke if Kobe were in his junior season there.

About the only thing about Bryant everybody agrees upon is that he sure could have used that time at Duke.

“I think benching him is fine; do it right that minute, so he understands it,” West said. “The bench can help him. It can be punitive.”

Some have thought that a return to small forward would have also helped Bryant, who dominated from there early in the year. Glen Rice has done little at that position since the Lakers traded for him last month.

“Kobe has got to be a ‘2,’ that’s his natural position,” West countered. “His size and strength give him such a huge advantage there.

“Have you seen the size of the average ‘3’ in this league? Those guys are much bigger than Kobe. We need to lessen the burden on him.”

Not that West thinks any of this is an excuse.

“I won’t make excuses for any player--there are definitely times that Kobe needs to see the game a little differently,” he said.

But if the Dennis Rodman debacle taught the organization anything. . . .

“I just hope the people around here have learned their lesson,” West said. “And that’s, we need patience. With a team this young, we still need to be patient.”

While West declined to discuss his relationship with owner Jerry Buss--”We get along great, I don’t want to get into it any further,” he said politely--that line about patience could have referred to his Rodman-enamored boss.

There is also some question as to whether Buss’ sudden impatience forced West to make the trade for Rice and add more turmoil to an already unsteady season.

All of which has perhaps helped convince West to raise his hands and ask everyone to calm down about the boy wonder.

“I still go back to the times you watch him and say, ‘My gosh,’ ” West said.

He said it with amazement. There are other ways it has been said. The debate simmers.

Bill Plaschke can be reached at his e-mail address: bill.plaschke@latimes.com