Brown probably got best of the rest

If you ask Phil Jackson, the guy who got the most out of a light practice week was not Kobe Bryant, who used the time to strengthen his right knee.

Nor was it 19-year-old Andrew Bynum, who was able to exhale after a swift few weeks.

Instead, it was Kwame Brown.

“I think out of all the people, he’s the one that’s benefited the most,” Jackson said. “Any questions he had about his shoulder, his neck, I think that all came out.

“Kwame spends a lot of time on the training-room table, he’s in the training room a lot, but this week gave him the confidence that he could go out there and play and not feel the effects of it.”

It would be good timing for the Lakers, who found out last week that Chris Mihm would be sidelined the rest of the season because of ankle surgery.

And yet, Jackson is taking pains not to burden Brown with statistical responsibility.

“We want Kwame to think of himself as a 10-rebound, 10-point kind of guy,” Jackson said. “He doesn’t have to carry the load of anything on this team, but we do expect him to carry the load of a presence, and that’s what he can do -- be the guy that’s the ultimate stopper in our defensive end. That’s all that’s important for us, really, the physical nature of his game.... The rest of it’s all gravy.”

Brown had eight points and seven rebounds in 19 minutes Friday against Toronto. He altered a shot by Morris Peterson in the second quarter, forcing the Raptors forward to airball a reverse layup attempt.

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Miami center Shaquille O’Neal will sit out four to six weeks because of knee surgery, a time frame that could keep him out of the Lakers-Heat game Christmas Day in Miami.

Without O’Neal, the only NBA game that day could lose some of its luster.

“Without a doubt,” Jackson said. “I think they should change the schedule and allow us to stay home for Christmas. We’ll miss Santa, there’s no doubt about it, if he’s not there.”

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Of all the injuries, treatments and rehabilitations the Lakers have endured this season, Jackson’s condition sometimes is forgotten.

It has been almost three weeks since he returned to the sidelines after hip-replacement surgery.

“We have a crack therapy crew as trainers here in this franchise,” Jackson said. “I have the best of possible worlds, if I can sustain it after a practice, to go back and work out.”

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mike.bresnahan@latimes.com