Jackson counts on a sturdier bench

Phil Jackson looked down his bench last season and saw Devean George, Luke Walton and a slew of rookies looking back.

Now he sees many more options -- an energetic Ronny Turiaf, an up-and-coming Jordan Farmar, an able-bodied defender in Maurice Evans and, of course, Andrew Bynum.

He also has Brian Cook and Vladimir Radmanovic, sweet-shooting big men who have yet to discover their stroke this season, but undeniably key players for the Lakers in the near future without Lamar Odom.

“Definitely, we have to have some players that will fill that gap,” Jackson said.

Odom left early in the first quarter of the Lakers’ victory over Houston on Tuesday because of a sprained knee ligament. A timetable has not been established for his return.

Cook had eight points against the Rockets, the most he had scored since Nov. 10, a span of 15 games. Radmanovic, stifled most of the season because of a sprained ligament in his shooting hand, had 10 points. Cook and Radmanovic each made two three-point baskets.

“I felt good out there,” said Cook, who had tumbled out of Jackson’s rotation because of illness and an overcrowded frontcourt. “It’s about getting my timing back. I was able to hit some shots, get it going a little bit. It felt like the game was a little fast for me when I first got out there, but it slowed down after a while.”

The Lakers’ reserves struggled under the weight of a 21-point lead in the fourth quarter, forcing the starters to reenter and temporarily undermining the kind words Jackson had for them before the Lakers’ 102-94 victory.

“It certainly picks us up during the course of the game,” Jackson said. “It speeds the game up, it gives us an activity level. Last year, we just had Devean George and Luke as he came along after his injury at this time of the year as experienced guys coming off of the bench. Now we’ve got guys that are young and active and we’ve had good recognition skills.”

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Unlike most other NBA teams, the Lakers will have a few days to adjust to going back to the leather basketball after spending three months with the microfiber composite ball.

The new ball will be put in play Jan. 1. The Lakers first game in 2007 will be Jan. 4 against Sacramento.

“I think the players are all relatively used to that ball having played with it for most of their careers,” Jackson said. “I guess the biggest thing that would be a concern is breaking in the balls, having them a week or so, so they get broken in.”

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TONIGHT

at Dallas, 6:30 PST, Channel 9, ESPN

Site -- American Airlines Center.

Radio -- 570, 1330.

Records -- Lakers 15-6, Mavericks 14-7.

Record vs. Mavericks (2005-06) -- 2-1.

Update -- George, who signed a two-year, $4.2-million contract with Dallas after seven seasons with the Lakers, is averaging 4.5 points.

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mike.bresnahan@latimes.com