Foul Trouble Still Plaguing Brown

Another night for Kwame Brown, another game without continuity and contribution.

The big Laker acquisition over the summer, Brown has been small in the stat department, averaging six points and 4.8 rebounds in playing time that has been sometimes choppy because of foul trouble.

“He has to get out there and play on the floor for 30, 35 minutes so it feels like he’s caught it,” Coach Phil Jackson said. “Then everything’s going to kind of fall in place for him.... The players still want to believe in him. I think that’s key, that they still trust him and think that he’s going to have a breakout game.”

It could have come Tuesday against the Atlanta Hawks.

Brown scored 17 seconds into the game, converting a three-point play after being fouled on a layup, but then scored only one more basket -- a dunk early in the third quarter -- for a total of five points, along with five rebounds.

Brown played the entire first quarter but only 33 seconds of the second quarter because he picked up two fouls in 13 seconds.

“Gotta stay out of foul trouble, for one,” Brown said. “For two, I’ve got to find a way to get to the block a little more and, when I do, catch [the ball]. Kobe [Bryant] threw me a couple of passes and I dropped them. I’ve got to be more alert and ready when I come across the lane.”

Jackson mentioned a sequence in last week’s game against Phoenix where Brown “got himself behind the eight ball,” Jackson said.

“He tried to post up, didn’t get the ball, didn’t rebound, was disappointed because he didn’t get the ball [and] as a consequence, didn’t hustle back,” Jackson said. “His guy beat him and got the foul on top of it at the other end of the floor.”

“The consequence is that he didn’t have an opportunity to touch the ball and then, at the other end of the court, because he just didn’t keep playing through the play, he cost himself the ability to stay on the floor for some duration of the game.”

As in, Brown was then benched.

Said Brown on Tuesday: “It’s only four games. I did a few good things when I’m out there. When Chris [Mihm] gets in foul trouble, I slide over to the [center] spot, then I get in foul trouble. Got to find a way to keep that first unit out there, keep me at [power forward] and work out of the post.”

TONIGHT

at Minnesota, 5 PST, Channel 9

Site -- Target Center.

Radio -- 570; 1330.

Records -- Lakers 3-1; Timberwolves 2-2.

Record vs. Timberwolves (2004-05) -- 2-1.

Update -- The Timberwolves failed to make the playoffs last season after advancing to the Western Conference finals two seasons ago, leading to a roster retooling over the summer. Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell are gone, and former Clipper guard Marko Jaric has been added.