Kupchak doesn’t see what worry is about

HONOLULU -- The Lakers began training camp in a dim high school gym, but tucked away in a corner, under a series of championship banners for high-school kayaking and paddling, General Manager Mitch Kupchak offered a season outlook that was comparatively bright.

A few minutes before boarding the unusual Lakers team bus -- stenciled on the side: “Polynesian Adventure Tours” -- Kupchak said that unsuccessful attempts to land a big name to go alongside Kobe Bryant were not disappointments, and, furthermore, the Lakers might be better than anticipated.

The Lakers aren’t on anybody’s short list to win the NBA title, which was duly, if not defensively, noted by Kupchak, entering his eighth season since taking over for Jerry West.

“We think this team, if they stay healthy, is a very talented team,” he said crisply. “Expectations aren’t very high. That’s OK with me. All I keep on reading is that we’re not a very good team. So if that’s what everybody thinks, then fine. It’s up to us to prove them wrong.”

The roster has changed slightly since the Lakers lost in five games to Phoenix in the first round of the playoffs. Georgia Tech guard Javaris Crittenton was drafted, Chris Mihm and Luke Walton were re-signed, and Derek Fisher fell into the Lakers’ laps to take the place of disgruntled Smush Parker.

There was a big push to pry Kevin Garnett from Minnesota, and there were talks with Indiana about Jermaine O’Neal, but nothing came of it, other than a series of headlines about trade discussions.

“We don’t want to get into a situation where we feel there’s pressure to make a deal just to make a deal, so we’ve been really patient in that regard,” Kupchak said. “In terms of being disappointed, no, we’re not disappointed.”

Kupchak was partly the focus of Bryant’s off-season discontent, but the two have had a better rapport since meeting at the team’s El Segundo offices in June. Kupchak even said Tuesday he could relate to Bryant’s restlessness.

“We did not end the season last year on a good note, and a lot of the frustrations that Kobe talked about were related to not winning games,” Kupchak said. “So I understand that completely. I am very happy to be in training camp and looking forward to this season. This is an exciting time of year. From that respect, I’m glad the summer’s over.”

Center Kwame Brown was arrested in Georgia early Saturday morning and charged with disorderly conduct and interference with an officer after his cousin was pulled over and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol.

Brown, believed to be either a passenger in the car or following closely behind it, has had numerous legal run-ins since being the top pick in the 2001 draft.

The Lakers are aware of the latest incident and declined to comment.

Brown, 25, was accused of sexual assault by a college student in May 2005, although prosecutors declined to file charges because of insufficient evidence.

Last January, a police report was filed after he was accused of ruining a cake being held by a birthday celebrant outside a Hermosa Beach night club.

Brown, who played high school basketball in Georgia, was arrested in 2002 for driving 120 mph and again in 2003 for driving under the influence.

Kupchak moved to clarify comments Bryant made Monday about owner Jerry Buss.

“My involvement with Dr. Buss the last six or seven years has been pretty consistent,” Kupchak said. “I wouldn’t say that I have communicated less or met with Dr. Buss less in the last two years than I did three or four years ago.

“Clearly, Jimmy Buss is more involved in the last two or three years than he was five or six years ago, so maybe that’s a little bit about what maybe Kobe’s talking about. But my involvement with Dr. Buss has been pretty consistent, and Jimmy and I and Dr. Buss spend a lot of time together.”

Bryant said Monday he was relieved that Jerry Buss was “kind of going to be back in the mix now.”

“What I understand about Jerry from the stuff that people have been telling me, is that he has kind of been out of the loop for the last two years.”

mike.bresnahan@latimes.com