Usual Subplots Follow an Epic

Kobe Bryant blew out of practice on a motorcycle Tuesday afternoon, a bodyguard dutifully on his right wing.

Before he pulled on his helmet and closed the tinted shield, he said his sprained right shoulder was “all right,” no damage done in his 38-point game the night before against the Orlando Magic, including one of the epic individual fourth quarters in franchise history.

From the moment he checked in for Devean George to the moment his driving layup tied the score, 102-102, Bryant scored 24 points in 9 minutes 37.5 seconds, 34 seconds less if one considers it took him that long to score once off the bench.

It was breathtaking theater in a town that fakes that sort of thing before lunch. It spoke to Bryant’s basketball brilliance, even while he is encumbered by injury and, with his next court date a week from today, untold distraction.

And yet -- and there is always “and yet” in purple and gold -- that was the Magic, this is mid-March and those are teammates. The Laker season turns on Bryant, on his many court dates -- he is expected to sit out next Wednesday’s game against the Sacramento Kings, and has three court dates in April and five in May -- and on his many floor whims.

From one point in the first half Monday to 37 thereafter, from sitting out games to filling them up, the Lakers can hardly guess what’s next.

One of Coach Phil Jackson’s daughters recently told him how much she loves watching Laker games, because she never knows what to expect. From big wins to inconceivable losses, from the triangle offense to playground ball, there’s just no telling. See the Lakers, see originality. Against the Magic, the people standing and booing in the third quarter blended perfectly with the people standing and cheering five minutes later, as though they’d never sat down.

“We just have to deal with what is, and that was what was on that particular night,” Jackson said. “A lot of times you have to ride the hot hand, especially in a game where you’re 15 down. You don’t have time to check out if anybody else is going to get hot. Every possession has to become a critical one.”

Even the Lakers who occasionally feel left behind, Gary Payton and Shaquille O’Neal being two, could not help but smile in bemusement, as Bryant seemed to make every shot, as the Magic came apart.

In fact, by Tuesday, Payton appeared to have come to an understanding about it all. He insisted he’d play along, give the ball to Bryant.

“That’s just him,” Payton said. “This was his team. In Seattle, if he would have come to my team, I probably would have been dominating the ball too. So, it’s a thing like that. You’ve got to adjust to it. He’s more comfortable when he has the ball and makes plays. I’m more comfortable when I have the ball and make plays. But I’m here and I have to adjust to that. What I have to do is help him, as much as possible.”

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Bryant’s next pretrial hearings for his sexual assault trial in Colorado are scheduled for next Wednesday and Thursday. He told Jackson he would attend practice Tuesday, sit out Wednesday night’s game against the Kings and Thursday’s practice, then return in time for the shoot-around March 26. The Lakers play the Minnesota Timberwolves that night.... After a slowdown, if not exactly a strike, of eight days, O’Neal spoke to the media Tuesday. He came down in favor of ball movement and high-percentage shots.

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TONIGHT

Lakers at Clippers, 7:30

Ch. 5 and Ch. 9

Site -- Staples Center.

Radio -- KLAC (570), KWKW (1330), XTRA (690/1150).

Records -- Lakers 44-23, Clippers 27-40.

Series record -- 1-1.

Update -- Since defeating the Lakers on Jan. 4, the Clippers are 13-24. Only the Bulls have a worse record over the same period.