So much of the talk this week has been about Kobe Bryant and/or Lamar Odom potentially shifting to play small forward that last year’s starting small forward Vladimir Radmanovic has been flying under the radar a bit.

So just where does Radmanovic fit into the Lakers plans this year? How much will he play?

“As an athlete, you always want to play, but we have have to take a look at the big picture and the big picture this year is winning a championship,” Radmanovic said. “Some guys are going to play more minutes, other guys will play less minutes. But you just have to do what the coach asks of you, and play the role the team needs you to play.”

For Radmanovic, that generally means being a consistent outside shooter and enough of a defensive presence that other players don’t have to leave their men to help him out. Radmanovic, who at 6-10 is actually a lot quicker than many people give him credit for, said he’s worked hard on his defense during the off-season.

“As you get older, that’s one of the things you realize is important,” he said. “So I’ve really tried to work hard on that.”