Bynum is early to rise

Meanwhile, in the continuing development of the Lakers’ resident teenager....

Lost among the near-historic eight-point, 10-assist game put up by Kobe Bryant, the season-high 23 points by Smush Parker and the staggering 39 assists collected by the Lakers against Denver, there was a second consecutive double-double from center Andrew Bynum.

The starting spot is his again by default, and he doesn’t want it to slip away. He now shows up 40 minutes early to practice after being demoted last month by Coach Phil Jackson for being late to a pregame warmup.

“I never really got complacent,” said Bynum, pinning his demotion on failure to put in extra time, not poor attitude. “I wasn’t coming in earlier like I am now. “

He meets with special assistant coach Kareem Abdul-Jabbar before practice to go over the previous night’s game. Against Denver, Bynum had 19 points on eight-for-nine shooting, 10 rebounds and a career-best six blocked shots. He also had only two fouls in 29 minutes.

There wasn’t much to discuss Saturday morning.

“He said I did a pretty good job of protecting the paint without getting any of those cheap fouls that I normally do,” Bynum said.

Jackson has noticed.

“We’re pleased,” he said. “We hope that he can continue that pace. He’s showing a little initiative. The big thing is the recovery time between one game and the next, and that’s real critical with a young guy like Drew.”

Bynum has one last observation. The bench isn’t as fun as the starting lineup.

“You always feel comfortable when you’re able to get comfortable actually on the court and got enough time out there, and you don’t just get yanked right away if you make one mistake,” he said. “That’s the biggest difference, just knowing you’re going to be out there. You have a different mind-set.”

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Advice for fans who track down Bryant for an autograph: Make sure not to bring a No. 8 jersey.

Bryant signed a deal with Upper Deck Authenticated in which he would no longer sign No. 8 jerseys, only those with No. 24. The last No. 8 Bryant officially signed was recently auctioned off for an undisclosed sum, with part of the proceeds going toward Bryant’s Vivo Foundation.

Bryant is serious about sticking to the terms of the deal.

“They understand,” Bryant said of his fans. Then he added, jokingly, “They should have got a 24 jersey.”

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Jackson is one victory away from his 900th in the NBA and would become the fastest coach to do it if the Lakers win sometime in the next 14 games. If not, Pat Riley still holds the honors.... Denver Coach George Karl after Friday’s loss to the Lakers: “They’re the best passing team in the NBA and they proved it.”

TONIGHT

vs. Dallas, 6:30, FSN West

Site -- Staples Center.

Radio -- 570, 1330.

Records -- Lakers 22-11, Mavericks 27-7.

Record vs. Mavericks -- 0-1.

Update -- The Mavericks have the league’s best record and have won 13 consecutive games, including a 90-85 victory Friday in San Antonio. The Lakers lost to Dallas last month, 110-101, in their first full game without Lamar Odom. The Mavericks haven’t given up 100 points in 12 games since then.

mike.bresnahan@latimes.com