Brown Back With Mihm in Lineup

Kwame Brown made a surprise appearance in the starting lineup, receiving a reprieve after a slow start this season.

Laker Coach Phil Jackson said last month he didn’t like the way Brown and Chris Mihm played together on the court, but there they were Friday against Philadelphia after Brown’s reserve status had been removed.

Brown was averaging only 5.7 points and 5.6 rebounds before Friday and also had 39 turnovers, a surprisingly high number for how few touches come his way.

“We’re concerned, mildly concerned, about that,” Jackson said before Friday’s game. “Matter of confidence, matter of over-anxiety a little bit. We want him to settle in and be comfortable out there on the floor.”

Jackson, asked if Brown’s hands were small for a seven-footer, said he and Brown compared hands after the Lakers acquired Brown from the Washington Wizards.

“I have a medium-sized hand and his hand’s a little bigger than mine,” Jackson said. “It’s not that small.”

Brown had four points and five rebounds in 21 minutes in the victory over Philadelphia. Mihm had 13 points and seven rebounds in 37 minutes.

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The Lakers will be the first team to play in New Orleans after the league announced that three games would be moved from Baton Rouge, La., to New Orleans Arena. The Lakers play the Hornets there March 8, the first pro game in the city since Hurricane Katrina.

“I will not make any comment about New Orleans because I end up commenting about cities and getting on the wrong side of it,” Jackson said. “I’ll just say, hopefully they’ve drained the mud out of the building and the termites aren’t going to eat the buildings away in between the time we get down there.”

The Hornets, who have played a majority of their home games in Oklahoma City, were disappointed by a small turnout of 7,302 for a game Dec. 16 against Phoenix in Baton Rouge.

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Mihm, the Texas Longhorns’ career leader in blocked shots, attended the Rose Bowl game with girlfriend Brittany Savelkoul, a former USC soccer player.

When USC took a 12-point lead with 6:42 to play, Mihm wasn’t overly enthused.

“I was sick,” he said.

Then came the ending.

“We went back to my house and I made her watch it again,” Mihm said, smiling.