If They Pull Together, They Won’t Fall Apart

CHICAGO â€”  Happy days aren’t quite here again yet.

The Lakers thrilled a big United Center crowd by keeping the 18-47 Bulls in the game to the end Saturday night, so even Coach Phil Jackson, who said he was “encouraged� after the big loss at Minnesota, acknowledged they were “fortunate� to get out of Dodge with this one.

The rest of their schedule is favorable but, as usual, that’s not the problem. The Lakers are good enough if only they’re happy enough and together enough. Like Pogo, they have seen the enemy again and it’s still them.

Saturday’s was another of those games Kobe Bryant dominated, but it was different than the Kobe who played the best ball of his life from the All-Star break to March 5, when he hurt his shoulder.

The post-break Bryant averaged eight assists, a monster total for a shooting guard, along with 29 points and eight rebounds.

The Chicago Kobe took 25 shots and had three assists. As is often the case on nights like this, a murmur rose once more from the Laker dressing room.

Karl Malone delivered the ritual denial (“Who really cares? Really?�) Shaquille O’Neal maintained a weeklong silence by parting a crowd of press people. Gary Payton didn’t stick around long.

In real life, some people care a lot.

This season, of course, has been all about Bryant, facing trial and free agency, even if the order is often reversed on the sports pages. We have been through Will He, Won’t He, and then, The Heck With Him.

When he was hurt after his brilliant play coming out of the break, everyone noticed this thing didn’t fly without him. Thus began a new chapter: Oh My Gosh, What Will We Do If He Leaves?

There were suggestions of a thaw. Even O’Neal allowed he never could have won three titles “without somebody like Kobe.�

This might not have been quite the invitation that would turn everything around for Bryant, but it was a start.

Of course, with Bryant, you can get a new incarnation every week, like the one that reappeared in Boston with a pad protecting his shoulder and a purple compression shirt holding it in place. He got 10 assists that night but shot four of 16.

Then he went six of 20 with five assists against the Timberwolves before Saturday’s 12 of 25 (10 of 19 right-handed, two of six left-handed) with three assists against the Bulls.

“I felt like when I came in after the All-Star break, we needed everybody to feel like they’re a part of the team,� Bryant said, “and when guys touch the ball, when guys contribute, even if they miss a shot, they feel like they’re part of the game. And as a result, they play harder and they play harder on defense and they hustle more. So that’s what I tried to do and I still try to do that.

“Now you have to balance it out because you want to get wins. You don’t want to force-feed the ball in situations, if you can’t get it to them. Like tonight, that’s why I scored a little bit more. But every night I try to do that.�

So now we’re back into “wait and see which way this goes� mode.

Happily for the Lakers, they were playing the Bulls, who would kill for their troubles. The Bulls don’t have a bunch of superstars they’d like to keep together but a lot of young players management would like to scatter to the four winds.

Their season has been a long-running version of “My Three Sons,� with crusty old dad, played by Coach Scott Skiles, imparting valuable lessons about life to his kids, played by Eddy Curry, Tyson Chandler and Jamal Crawford.

Skiles, who may be taking his role too seriously, recently benched Chandler for tucking his jersey into his spandex tights rather than his uniform trunks. The most recent problem to hit the papers was veteran Kendal Gill’s barking at Curry after Eddy’s cell phone rang in the dressing room.

“I think everybody should look in the mirror,� said Crawford before Saturday’s game. “Everybody has their flaws.... Everybody’s going at everybody. When things get tough, it tells you a lot about a person’s character.�

Nevertheless, with their big four just reunited, the Lakers aren’t cohesive now, nor do they often play well with all the age they’re carrying on the second night of back-to-backs.

Bryant started the game, looking determined to get the ball into O’Neal but decided the Bulls were playing him for the pass so he should cross them up.

The Lakers needed his 35 points, but from now on, they’re going to need those eight assists a game more. Everybody has their flaws, all around, but this is crunch time in Lakerdom.