Kobe Bryant makes a pass at helping the Lakers win Here's what I saw the other night in the second half against the Clippers: The Ball Hog came to the conclusion he had to win the game if the Lakers were going to prevail. It was as if he didn't notice the Lakers' 7-footers were on the court; everyone else was invisible as well. The offense began and ended with Kobe Bryant scoring or not. Andrew Bynum and Pau Gasol, who stand closest to the basket, combined for 10 shots in the second half; Bryant had 17. Someone might say Bryant was just trying to keep his record intact of scoring 40 points or more, but not this time. It just seemed as if beating the Clippers had become very important, which goes to show you how far the Clippers have come. Bryant made some incredible shots, his brilliance undisputed, but doing things his way rather than exploiting the size advantage inside, the Lakers lost. He can score 40 points any night he tries, and there are enough terrible teams where the Lakers will win no matter how they play. But can they win against the better teams with the Ball Hog playing his own game? We'll see this week against Dallas, Miami and Orlando. More important, has Coach Mike Brown lost control of Bryant? "I hope not; I don't think so," Brown says. There was a stretch [against the Clippers] where we were struggling offensively and he got hot. If he's efficient with his shooting and scoring, I'm going to let him go. But that runs contrary to Brown's stated strategy of getting the ball inside. "Yes, it does," Brown says, "but until we can do a better job of it, sometimes I've got to let some things go. Right now we're still trying to find ourselves. Brown starts talking about the need for more guys than just Bryant to score, and team PR assistant Josh Rupprecht cuts the interview short. Maybe the Lakers don't want the coach saying something to irritate Bryant. Whatever, Bryant opens against Dallas passing the ball inside; Phil Jackson said he never knew which Bryant he'd get to start a game. Bryant helps get both Gasol and Bynum going, but he struggles, going 0 for 4 in the first quarter. By halftime he's four for nine, but his teammates are more involved and the Lakers are winning by four points. Too bad his teammates aren't as entertaining or capable of making trick shots. But what do you want? Bryant goes 0 for 6 in the third quarter, seven for 22 for the game. With the score tied, the Ball Hog passes. Dallas is left frozen in shock, the ball goes to Derek Fisher, who hits the winning three. A team victory. WHY IS the best basketball team in town playing the Martin Luther King Jr. matinee? The Clippers won, though the Lakers drew the prime-time assignment.