Atkins a Quiet Change From Predecessor Payton

The transition from Gary Payton to Chucky Atkins has definitely been, well, quiet.

The trade that sent Payton to the Boston Celtics and brought Atkins to the Lakers was more than an exchange of point guards. It was a seismic shift in personalities.

The mercurial Payton made plenty of noise in his only season with the Lakers, complaining about the limits of the triangle offense and loudly lamenting his gradual loss of playing time.

Atkins, on the other hand, has put together a career by being selfless and comparatively silent.

Unlike Payton, Atkins has never been an All-Star. But also unlike Payton, Atkins arrived in training camp eager and energetic; Payton dragged his feet so much that Celtic officials dispatched a private jet to Los Angeles to make sure he’d show up for camp.

Whereas Payton ultimately stretched the boundaries of the triangle, Atkins has recognized his place on the Laker food chain -- below Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom, Caron Butler and maybe a couple of others.

“I’m going to have my opportunities to score,” Atkins said. “I played with Paul Pierce last year and was still able to score. My thing is just to be patient and learn how to play with these guys and get some type of cohesiveness.”

Coach Rudy Tomjanovich is aware of what Atkins brings to the Lakers.

“They really talked [in Boston] about how he stabilized those guys and when he got into the lineup, they had some direction,” Tomjanovich said.

“He’s one of those guys that just didn’t have a smooth career and had to do a little work just getting on the team and all that. I love guys like that who have had to earn their way.”

Atkins’ exhibition numbers have not been spectacular -- 3.4 points and 2.9 assists -- but Tomjanovich has given extra time to rookie Sasha Vujacic and three-year pro Tierre Brown to see who would be a more capable backup.

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One by one, the line to the trainer’s room is thinning.

Luke Walton and Kareem Rush are back from ankle injuries, and Slava Medvedenko is close to returning from a bruised heel.

Vlade Divac and Devean George remain out. Divac is not expected to play in Tuesday’s opener against the Denver Nuggets because of a herniated disk in his back, and George is out at least three more weeks because of off-season ankle surgery.

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The Lakers waived center Ike Nwankwo, who played at UCLA and Long Beach State, and guard Nate Johnson, an undrafted rookie from Nebraska.