Brown, Arenas Get Along

Maybe it was the byproduct of a meaningless exhibition.

Or maybe the plot line has run its course.

Either way, there was Kwame Brown on one side, Gilbert Arenas on the other, both of them civil to each other Tuesday, almost six months after a blow-up that ultimately sent Brown from the Washington Wizards to the Lakers.

“No problems,” Brown said after the Lakers’ 111-108 victory in overtime at Rabobank Arena in Bakersfield. “I didn’t see anything, did you? Much ado about nothing.”

Brown and Arenas nearly came to blows during last season’s playoffs, when Arenas told Wizard Coach Eddie Jordan not to insert Brown into the game, according to Brown.

Brown then dragged his feet, skipping practice because he feared he would physically retaliate against Arenas, and was suspended by the Wizards for the rest of the playoffs.

Any lingering tensions were kept below the surface Tuesday, apparently dissolving when they tapped fists before the game.

Brown finished with 19 points. Arenas had 27 points and seven assists.

Caron Butler and Chucky Atkins, sent to the Wizards in August for Brown and Laron Profit, played reserve roles Tuesday. Butler, who will probably be the Wizards’ sixth man, had 19 points.

Atkins, Arenas’ primary backup, had eight points.

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Kobe Bryant had 28 points on 12-for-24 shooting, but he missed all three of his overtime attempts, leading to a postgame chat with Coach Phil Jackson, who didn’t like Bryant’s shot selection in the end.

“I just said that you took a lot of tough shots you didn’t have to, you pushed the envelope real far,” Jackson said.

Bryant seemed to agree.

“Down the stretch, they were able to load their defense up, and the shot clock was winding down, so I took shots that I don’t like taking,” Bryant said. “When I get in a roll, when I get in a rhythm, then I’ll look to shoot the ball, but that rhythm has to be built.”

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Thursday will be Jackson’s first time back on the sideline in Staples Center, but he won’t brush away tears during tip-off against the Denver Nuggets.

“That doesn’t really stir my heartstrings that much in that sense, that I get nostalgic about a locker room or a situation like that,” Jackson said.

“If we can pull off another championship some time in the next three years, that might be something different.”

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The Lakers waived Will Conroy, an undrafted guard from the University of Washington who averaged 9.2 points and 4.3 assists in 121 games with the Huskies.... Veteran forward-center Corie Blount was diagnosed with a sprained left foot and will be out indefinitely.