Lakers’ Byron Scott on Kobe Bryant: “He’ll be fine”

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant #24 stands next to coach Byron Scott in the first half. The Lakers played the Minnesota Timberwolves in the opening game of the 2015-16 NBA season. Los Angeles, CA, 10/28/2015 (photo by John McCoy/Los Angeles News Group)

Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant #24 stands next to coach Byron Scott in the first half. The Lakers played the Minnesota Timberwolves in the opening game of the 2015-16 NBA season. Los Angeles, CA, 10/28/2015 (photo by John McCoy/Los Angeles News Group)

NEW YORK — Instead of Kobe Bryant offering clutch game-winning baskets, the Lakers’ star has provided a handful of airballs. Instead of willing his body to do the impossible, the 37-year-old Bryant has faced physical limitations. Instead of hoping his tireless workouts to end any struggle, the Lakers encouraged Bryant to scale back.

This hardly makes for the ideal script of Bryant’s opening act of his 20th and perhaps final NBA season. Yet, Lakers coach Byron Scott argued Bryant’s reemergence could happen as quickly as when the Lakers (0-4) play the Brooklyn Nets (0-5) on Friday at Barclays Center.

“He’s pretty tough on himself,” Scott said of Bryant following morning shootaround. “But if he keeps playing, he’ll be fine.”

Scott offered every concerning development surrounding Bryant’s play with a rebuttal.

Bryant’ has averaged 15.8 points on 32.3 percent shooting in 28 minutes per game through four contests. But Scott paid less attention to those numbers and more attention to Bryant’s lost conditioning through a two-week stretch during training camp after bruising his lower left leg.

“It’s more of getting his timing together. I don’t equate that to points. I just think right now he’s a little rusty,” Scott said of Bryant. “His timing is a little bit off. The more he gets that down, the faster I think will come back.”

Bryant has proven equally unreliable nearly anywhere he has shot on the court. He has gone 20-of-62 from the field (32%). He has shot 7-of-34 from 3-point range (20.5%). Though Scott has called on Bryant to favor shots from the post and elbows, the Lakers’ star has mostly operated from out of the perimeter. Yet, Scott maintained Bryant “is trying to explore every possibility right now.” He also credited Bryant for attacking the basket, which resulted him making 16-of-18 free-throw attempts (88.9%).

“It’s a matter of our guys finding him,” Scott said. “When we do get it to him, we have to keep our spacing. Sometimes we have two guys cutting at the same time. That clogs it up. Young guys are trying to find their way and understand when to cut and when not to cut. That’s the dilemma we’re in right now.”

The Lakers have also entered a dilemma in managing Bryant’s practice regimen.

Scott noted that Bryant “cut down on his workload of taking so many shots before games” to preserve his health after three debilitating injuries in consecutive seasons. Scott also argued “you can go overkill just by going out shooting, shooting and shooting.” Yet, that arguably could have delayed Bryant’s hopes to shed off the rust accumulated through a two-week absence. Bryant’s absence from practice could also delay maximizing on-court chemistry, most notably with D’Angelo Russell.

And yet…

“It’s not a challenge to get Kobe right,” Scott said. “The challenge is to get the young guys right. I’m not worried about him. He’s the last guy to worry about on our team.”

But there marks plenty of things to worry about Bryant’s current play, something Scott believes will improve as quickly as one of his past scoring outbursts.

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Follow L.A. Daily News Lakers beat writer Mark Medina on Twitter and on Facebook. E-mail him at mark.medina@langnews.com