Bryant is L.A.'s future

If he's not ready for prime time yet, it won't be long before Kobe Bryant is making NBA opponents look foolish on a regular basis.

The 19-year-old second-year guard for the Los Angeles Lakers would only be a sophomore in college today. But his game has developed to where he appears to be more than holding his own against basketball's best.

He served notice Wednesday at the Thomas & Mack Center that he is ready to take on more as he displayed a dazzling array of offensive moves in the Lakers' 124-113 overtime win over the Washington Wizards in Las Vegas' annual NBA preseason game.

Bryant ended the first quarter with a stunning shake-and-bake move on Jimmy Oliver at the top of the key, then swooped to the basket and finished with a flying slam dunk that sent the 10,771 fans at the Mack into a frenzy.

He had 11 points at halftime and his quickness was evident as he easily eluded the Wizards' attempt to shut him down. It took a shot to the head late in the third quarter to stop Bryant as he ran into Chris Webber's hand and wound up with an abrasion of his right cornea and did not return. Bryant finished with 12 points in 17 minutes.

"I'm just trying to work on my overall game and work on being the best person I can," Bryant said when asked about what's in store for his second pro season. "I still have a lot to learn."

Bryant, who averaged 15 minutes a game as a rookie a year ago, is seeing more playing time from coach Del Harris. He is averaging 21 minutes in the preseason off the bench and he's comfortable with his role.

"I think patience had a lot to do with it," he said of the most valuable lesson he learned from his rookie season. "Things happen so fast in this league that sometimes you need to take a step back and learn how to be in the flow of the game."

Bryant opted to bypass college altogether a year ago and the Lakers were able to obtain him from Charlotte when they traded Vlade Divac to the Hornets for Bryant's rights. At the time, there was much speculation whether Bryant, the son of former NBAer Joe "Jellybean" Bryant, was ready to play at the pro level straight out of Lower Marion High School near Philadelphia.

But the Lakers' plan was to bring Bryant along slowly, not put him in a must-deliver situation immediately and let him pick and choose his spots to succeed. Harris refused to cave into pressure to play him more and the minutes eventually increased as the season went on.

He would end up averaging 7.6 points a game and was named to the NBA's All-Rookie second team.

"He's more confident and he knows I have confidence in him," Harris said. "Last year, he didn't have the confidence I would do that. Now he does.

"He's getting better all the time. Its like a child growing up. You put a mark on the door and chart his progress. You don't notice it every day, but it's there."

A year's seasoning in the league will obviously benefit Bryant, and not just on the court. He got a first-hand look at the grueling road that is the 82-game NBA schedule and the travel involved. It was arguably the biggest adjustment he had to make.

"Actually, it wasn't that tough," Bryant said of the travel. "For me, it was fun.

"Right now, it's not too bad. Seven years from now, it may not be so much fun."

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