Bryant has good seat for rally

It happened with stunning speed, a deficit overturned with a lineup that would cause almost any Lakers fan to pause, rewind and play it again, just to be certain that eyes weren’t playing tricks on minds.

The Lakers needed defense and got it, hoped for a push and received it, throwing themselves past the Minnesota Timberwolves with a surreal fourth quarter and a cast consisting of Sasha Vujacic, Maurice Evans, Vladimir Radmanovic, Jordan Farmar and Andrew Bynum.

By the time Kobe Bryant checked back into the game with 3:25 to play, the Lakers were well on their way to setting down the Timberwolves, 111-94, after their reserves helped win the fourth quarter, 34-7, Wednesday at Target Center.

Radmanovic finished with 17 points, Evans had 15, Bynum was a defensive presence with four blocked shots and Farmar had seven assists to offset a sleepy night for the starters and an apparent loss going into the final 12 minutes.

Even Coach Phil Jackson, with his Zen and everything, was still trying to wrap his mind around what he witnessed.

“It’s one of those games where you look at each other and you go, ‘Go figure,’ as a coaching staff,” Jackson said. “That your bench would come out there and have that productive of a fourth quarter in a road game, that’s really incredulous, actually.”

Or, as starter Luke Walton said: “We were laying on the floor, bleeding to death, and the bench came in and patched us up.”

Bryant, Walton, Smush Parker, Kwame Brown and surprise starter Brian Cook watched in delight as the reserves eliminated a deficit that stood at 10 points entering the final quarter.

The Lakers’ defense was run off the court in Sunday’s 147-141 overtime loss to Washington and was screen-and-rolled into submission in Tuesday’s loss to Chicago, but it stood strong late in Wednesday’s game: The Timberwolves had shot 61.7% through three quarters, but missed 13 of their first 14 shots in the fourth quarter.

Minnesota, which made only two of 19 shots in the final 12 minutes, tied team records for fewest points and field goals in a period.

Bynum was seemingly everywhere, blocking Craig Smith’s shot, forcing Kevin Garnett into an awkward baseline attempt that hit the side of the backboard, dunking after a length-of-the-court pass from Farmar and feeding Evans for a dunk.

He had been quiet over the last few weeks, reduced to backup status after Brown was inserted into the starting lineup Nov. 30, but then came Wednesday.

“Andrew Bynum got a couple blocks and changed a couple shots and we rebounded the misses and that changed the defense for us,” Jackson said.

Bryant had only one point in the fourth quarter, 24 in all on 10-for-17 shooting. More important, he played only 30 minutes, 9.4 below his average. The view from the bench looked good to him. He re-entered the game after the reserves had led a 25-4 run to start the fourth quarter.

“I was sitting next to Luke, and he and I were just enjoying it,” he said. “The more time we get to sit on the bench, the better. I’m especially happy for them because it gives them confidence to perform like this on the road. It just builds confidence for later in the season.”

He was then told that top-notch NFL running backs sometimes buy their offensive line Rolexes, recognizing their often-thankless grunt work. He responded with a smile, a nod and a one-liner.

“They’ve got to have quite a few more games before I think about doing something like that,” he said.

The Timberwolves played well enough to win if the game lasted only 36 minutes, continuing what had been an uncomfortable few days for the locals after it became official Allen Iverson wasn’t coming to the Twin Cities.

A headline in Wednesday’s editions of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune declared that “KG is the Next Superstar Target,” with the accompanying story asking, “What will Kevin Garnett bring?” And, in the story’s second paragraph: “Whether the Wolves are the first ones to ask that question or the last, make no mistake, it will get asked.”

The Lakers answered a few of their own questions Wednesday. They dressed quickly and boarded the team bus to the airport. New Jersey was beckoning.

mike.bresnahan@latimes.com