Bryant Getting a Big Deal

So Kobe Bryant is all set to sign a six-year, $70-million contract extension?

Good for him. Good for the Lakers. And all the more reason for Bryant to take a seat on the bench.

Now that there isn’t a financial incentive to put up big numbers, it shouldn’t be too hard to accept a backup role. For the sake of team chemistry and Bryant’s continued growth as a player, it’s the right thing to do.

Kobe wants to start and isn’t shy about stating his preference.

“I think starting, I would be more comfortable with my situation, knowing what I’m going to be asked to do night in and night out,” Bryant said. “I would definitely rather start.”

That’s the only definite about the Lakers’ starting shooting guard situation right now.

Coach Del Harris’ only hint of a commitment so far is that he’s leaning toward using last year’s starting lineup--Eddie Jones at shooting guard, Derek Fisher at the point, Shaquille O’Neal in the middle and Robert Horry and Rick Fox at forward--for the first exhibition game against the Clippers this weekend.

That worked for the second half of last season, and it should work now.

After everything else Jones has been through, he doesn’t need the sting of a demotion.

Jones has been a trouper throughout the off-season. He can’t help but hear his name mentioned in all those trade rumors. He knows that when there’s big money staked in a younger guy who plays your position, it doesn’t bode well for your long-term future with the team. But he has not griped to the media about being “disrespected,” and he never stopped practicing and playing pickup games with his Laker teammates.

Bryant is more aggressive than Jones when it comes to looking for his shot, a quality that makes him better suited for coming in off the bench. You want substitutes to make a quick impact, and Bryant’s athleticism can instantly change the tone of the game; his acrobatic dunks get the Forum crowd juiced.

But the beginning of the game should be Shaq’s time. Go inside to him early and often and force the opposing team to prove it has a way to stop him. The Lakers don’t need Kobe on the floor to do that.

Bryant and Elden Campbell would give the Lakers legitimate scoring options for their second unit, and that’s usually the biggest concern coaches have when they send in their subs.

Harris has floated the idea of rotating his shooting guards and perhaps adding Fox to that mix. So far that has generated a resounding, “Yeah, whatever” from the players.

“I’ll leave that alone,” Jones said when the subject came up.

“Del’s going to do whatever he wants,” Bryant said. “He’s the head coach.”

One thing Harris must do is find a way to distribute the minutes a little more evenly. Jones averaged 36 minutes a game last season, 10 more than Bryant. Bryant definitely belongs on the court at the end of the game; his free-throw shooting of .794 last season was the best on the team.

Coming off the bench won’t keep Bryant from his appointed rendezvous with greatness. Remember, Kevin McHale was a reserve for the first part of his career with the Boston Celtics. He started in only half of his 169 playoff games and won the NBA’s sixth man award in 1984 and 1985, when the Celtics were in the finals.

Maybe McHale isn’t a good example around here after he wouldn’t trade Tom Gugliotta to the Lakers. How about Michael Cooper? He played an important part in the Lakers’ five championships in the 1980s, and he did it as a reserve.

“I’m not going to be [a backup] my whole career,” Bryant said.

Nobody expects him to be. He simply has to wait until the Jones situation gets resolved.

Everyone sees Bryant knocking on the door. This contract extension just granted him access to the living room. He won’t be leaving for quite some time.

It might get a little trickier to trade Jones because he will be a free agent after the 1999-2000 season, and some teams are reluctant to take on a guy who can leave at the end of the year. But under the new collective bargaining agreement, most veterans stand to gain far more money by staying with their own teams than searching the free-agent market, so some general manager might be willing to take the chance on trading for Jones’ rights.

It’s up to Bryant to go from giving Harris a difficult lineup decision to forcing Jerry West to find someplace else for Jones. That will signal the next phase of Bryant’s development.

He analyzed videotapes of games from around the league. He worked on his game (individually, to the chagrin of some of his teammates) and says he has more range on his jump shot and is better at taking it off the dribble.

Bryant is 20 now. This isn’t kid stuff anymore. The only youthful trait he still displays is his antsiness, an inability to keep still. For him, waiting for the season to start is like waiting in line for a ride at Disneyland.

He was smiling throughout the Lakers’ media day Wednesday, giggling after every answer the way Monica Seles used to. He held a basketball in his hands, constantly turning it, palming it. He was excited to wear the Laker uniform again, happy to make the walk down the tunnel from the locker room to the court. He basked in the aroma of that distinctive Forum odor--a blend of old hot dogs and beer blended with designer perfumes.

“I can smell it,” Bryant said. “It’s still there.”

He didn’t even mind that if he had been born one year earlier and signed his extension before the new collective bargaining agreement came into place, he could have made an extra $50 million.

“Seven million dollars [a year], $8 million, that’s a lot of money; $120 million, that’s icing on the cake,” Bryant said. “I’m very happy with the situation.”

You have every reason to be happy, Kobe. Just don’t get so giddy that you forget to stop at the scorer’s table and have the referee wave you in when you check into the game.

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J.A. Adande can be reached at his e-mail address: j.a.adande@latimes.com