Talking Points

The numbers that have the NBA buzzing are 45, 48, 50 and 45 -- the point totals put up by Kobe Bryant in his last four games with the Lakers.

But the number the team is most interested in is three, which represents the winning streak it takes into Portland tonight.

And the question is, how relative is the first set of numbers to the streak?

Bryant has gone off on scoring tangents before. In January and February 2003, there was a nine-game stretch where he scored at least 40. That Laker team, which included Shaquille O’Neal, Derek Fisher and Rick Fox, finished the regular season 18 games over .500 and advanced to the Western Conference semifinals before losing to the San Antonio Spurs, the eventual league champions.

Only three current Lakers were even on that roster -- Slava Medvedenko and Devean George are the others -- and the team could fall back on O’Neal, the most dominant player in the league, if Bryant faltered or became too greedy. This season there is no such safety net.

Bryant’s scoring spree might also be characterized as a shooting spree. Only once in the four-game stretch has he made more than half of his shots in a game, and overall he is shooting 45.3% (63 of 139) in that span. Coach Phil Jackson -- who enjoyed a run of championships in Chicago when Michael Jordan was the league scoring champion -- says the number of shots Bryant has been taking is symptomatic of a new lineup struggling to understand and execute the triangle offense.

“In the process of running the offense, Kobe sees the opportunities available for them, [but] they’re not seeing the opportunities the offense presents for themselves or for the team,” Jackson said. “And as a result, it ends up being a situation where he takes advantage of these opportunities where the other players are looking at the gap, and not responding to it.

“Basketball is about playing as a team and finding a functioning level. If we have to play as a team with Kobe averaging 33 points a game, so be it. We want to be a winning team and do that in the process.”

Bryant’s scoring outburst has moved him into the league lead with an average of 34.1 points a game. The last scoring champion to average more was Jordan, who averaged 35.0 in the 1987-88 season when the Bulls were 50-32 and lost to Detroit in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

Jackson recalled a conversation he had with Jordan “15 to 17 years ago” when the coach said the number of shots Jordan was taking “wasn’t allowing his teammates to be a functioning part of the game.”

“So he had to think about not winning a scoring championship,” Jackson said. “He had won four in a row at that particular time. And he said, ‘Well, maybe I could drop my average from 37 to 32 because I don’t see how difficult it is to score eight points a quarter in this game. And I don’t think there’s anyone who can score more than 32 points a game right now.’

“That kind of logic made great sense to me at the time. However, he could do it with 24 shots. If you have to do it with 30 shots ... then it does take away from some of the other players.”

Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who won five of his six NBA championships with the Lakers and retired as the league’s all-time leading scorer, said, “It all has to do with how well the team’s doing, and what the team objectives are.”

“When you need somebody’s optimum output, you give them a total green light. And when that’s not essential, then you try and make it work for the team. I saw Wilt score 63 and 64 when I was in high school [in New York]. His teams were contending with the Celtics but could never get over that hump. But they needed everything they could get from Wilt. And it made sense for them.”

Now a special assistant to Jackson, Abdul-Jabbar said he wasn’t sure whether these Lakers were in a similar situation.

“But if we are, they’ll need everything they can get from Kobe,” he said.

In scoring 45 or more in four consecutive games, Bryant has joined an exclusive club. Only two other NBA players have enjoyed a similar spree, and both were Lakers. Elgin Baylor did it in December 1961 and the late Wilt Chamberlain had a nine-game streak while with the San Francisco Warriors in December 1964.

“It’s excellent company, to say the least,” Bryant said after practice Wednesday. “That might be the biggest understatement of the year. I’m just happy we’re able to win ballgames.”

Baylor, who is the general manager for the Clippers, said he can’t recall -- “Man, that was 44 years ago” -- his stretch of 45-plus-point games. But he did witness Bryant’s 50-point outburst against his team Saturday.

“Kobe made a lot of shots, he missed a lot of shots,” Baylor said. “Forty-one shots is a lot of shots. But he also hit the big shots that won them the game. He is a great player.”

Bryant knows he is a lightning rod for detractors who claim all he wants to do is score at the expense of his teammates. He chose his remarks carefully about the value of his recent performances.

“I just do it when I have to do it,” Bryant said. “I think for Lamar [Odom] and Smush [Parker] and Chris [Mihm], it’s a process of finding their way through the system, knowing where the shooting opportunities are going to come from.

“It’s something I had to struggle with when Phil first got here. But it’s something you have to learn on your own. The only way you learn is by film study, then figuring things out and being aggressive in the system.”

And what about the line between taking the shots he wants and keeping the other players on the court involved?

“It’s funny because that’s not a line I have to walk anymore,” Bryant said. “My role is if they need me to put points on the board, I do that. If I’m double- or triple-teamed, or I don’t have anything rolling, I kick the ball back out to my shooters. But Lamar has taken over that role of being the facilitator. He does a great job of keeping everyone involved.”

How long Bryant can keep up this pace is anyone’s guess. Jackson said he does not want to wear Bryant out “chasing points and things like that,” nor does he want to discourage Bryant from playing at an MVP level.

But Jackson also cannot let the pursuit of individual points get in the way of victories.

“When it doesn’t produce wins, that’s the fine line,” Jackson said. “Players have to be playing spontaneously with the freedom, and they also have to feel like they are part of it. And if they are, then they play at a better level.

“Kobe’s accomplishment is impressive. It’s a process to winning, and that’s the one thing you have to remember. It’s not about the points. It’s about the process that goes into what it takes to win the ballgame. And those things are the end result.”

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Shooting stars

Kobe Bryant leads the NBA with a 34.1 scoring average, the highest since Michael Jordan averaged 35.0 for Chicago during the 1987-88 season. List of the best scoring averages in league history:

*--* PLAYER PPG TEAM SEASON Wilt Chamberlain 50.4 Philadelphia 1961-62 Wilt Chamberlain 44.8 San Francisco 1962-63 Wilt Chamberlain 38.4 Philadelphia 1960-61 Wilt Chamberlain 37.6 Philadelphia 1959-60 Michael Jordan 37.1 Chicago 1986-87 Wilt Chamberlain 36.9 San Francisco 1963-64 Rick Barry 35.6 San Francisco 1966-67 Michael Jordan 35.0 Chicago 1987-88 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar 34.8 Milwaukee 1971-72 Elgin Baylor 34.8 Lakers 1960-61

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Source: NBA