Keeping Score: Bryant Has the Stats Of a Not-Quite-M.V.P. During his stint as the coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers, Mike Brown witnessed two most valuable player seasons by Cleveland's prodigal son, LeBron James. Now the coach of the Los Angeles Lakers, Brown is pushing his new star, Kobe Bryant, for M.V.P. consideration. Speaking to reporters last week, Brown remarked that Bryant "definitely should be involved in the M.V.P. talks." Brown added, "I think it's hilarious that he's not." On the surface, Brown seems to have a point, as Bryant entered Tuesday's games averaging a league-leading 28.8 points while chipping in 5.7 rebounds and 4.8 assists a game. But a closer examination reveals inefficiencies in Bryant's game that take a bit of the luster off his averages. True shooting percentage is a measure of scoring efficiency that takes into account 2-point field goals, 3-point field goals and free throws. Bryant's true shooting percentage was .525, the lowest of his career and the second-worst rate among the 14 qualified players averaging at least 20 points. In fact, since the 1979-80 season, only Allen Iverson (three times) and Jerry Stackhouse (once) have averaged at least 28 points with a lower true shooting percentage. The major problem for Bryant has been his 3-point shooting. Bryant was averaging five 3-point attempts a game, and his 3-point field-goal percentage was .286. That figure was the third-lowest 3-point field-goal percentage in the league among qualified players, and would be the third-worst rate in N.B.A. history among players averaging at least four 3-point attempts. Shooting aside, Bryant has also had problems with turnovers: he was averaging 3.6 turnovers per 36 minutes, the fifth-worst rate in the N.B.A. and his worst showing since the 2004-05 season. All of this would be understandable if Bryant had no other options, but he plays with two of the most skilled 7-footers in the league: Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum. Gasol and Bynum combined to average 25.5 field-goal attempts, slightly higher than Bryant's 23.9. But their combined field-goal percentage of .534 far exceeded Bryant's .435, a difference of almost 10 field goals every 100 attempts. Gasol and Bynum should be taking more shots; based on the numbers, Bryant is more than capable of setting the table for his teammates. Assist percentage is an estimate of the percentage of teammate field goals a player assisted on. Bryant led the Lakers with an assist percentage of 26.7 percent, a mark that would be his best in seven seasons. Despite some statistical shortcomings, Bryant is still one of the best players in the N.B.A. He may fall short of the M.V.P. standard set by James and Kevin Durant this season, but in that regard, he has plenty of company.