Kobe Bryant doesn’t have to do it all anymore and it’s made the Lakers a better overall basketball team.  He has played in 31 games this season and he’s averaging 36.5 minutes, 26.7 points, 6.2 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 1.9 steals per game.  With Andrew Bynum, Derek Fisher and Lamar Odom helping out Bryant he hasn’t been as selfish as he has in the past and that’s a good thing for the Lakers.

Lamar Odom and Trevor Ariza have both been great so far in December. Lamar Odom has played in 4 games this season for the Lakers and he has averaged 38.0 minutes, 14.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.0 assist per game. Odom has shot 50% this month which is outstanding. Trevor Ariza has fit right in on the Lakers in his 3 games this month. Ariza has averaged 22.0 minutes, 9.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocked shot per game this month. He also has shot a scorching 77.8% so far this month.

The Lakers refused to part with Bynum for players like Jason Kidd and Jermaine O’Neal and they are starting to reap the benefits of those decisions. Bynum is getting a lot of playing time due to Kwame Brown being out with injuries and he’s making the most of it. In 14 games this season, Bynum is averaging 25.7 minutes, 11.1 points, 10.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.4 blocked shots per game. Bynum also is a solid shooter as he has nailed 58.5% from the floor (mostly from close range) and he has also hit 72.1% of his free throws this season. Look out if the Lakers let Bynum start playing 35+ minutes per game because he has the talent to dominate the paint.

Too bad the other Lakers didn’t come to play as Kobe Bryant often seemed like he was giving it a go alone. He played in 77 games last season and he averaged 31.6 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.4 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Kobe also shot the ball pretty well last season as he hit 46.3% from the floor, 34.4% from 3-point range and 86.8% from the free throw line. Kobe tried to be unselfish at the start of the season but in the second half he took the team on his back and got them to the playoffs. The Lakers must get Kobe more help so he doesn’t have to do everything.

Kobe’s career numbers will continue to improve. The first couple of seasons that Kobe was with the Lakers he came off of the bench and that has skewed his career numbers a bit. In 784 games, Kobe has averaged 36.2 minutes, 24.6 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game. He also has shot well over his career as he’s hit 45.3% from the floor, 33.7% from the 3-point line and 83.8% from the free throw line.

Ronny Turiaf has been outstanding off of the bench his last 8 games. In those games, Turiaf is averaging 21.3 minutes, 8.5 points, 6.6 rebounds, 0.8 assists and 2.4 blocked shots per game. Turiaf is really giving the Lakers quality minutes as the team tries to hang on and make the NBA playoffs.