Kobe Bryant sat out for rest again Christmas Day, may sit Friday

Things went just fine when Kobe Bryant sat Tuesday. Better than fine, really, with the Los Angeles Lakers unexpectedly topping the league's best team, the Golden State Warriors.

The Lakers will try their luck without their superstar once again Thursday, as he'll sit out the team's Christmas Day showdown with the Chicago Bulls. Head coach Byron Scott said that Bryant requires further rest, sitting him down despite him being with the team in the Windy City.

Bryant said the chances are slim that he'll play Friday, as well.

Hold any Kobe hate momentarily - there will be plenty of time for that if the Lakers get rolled in Bryant's eventual return - and remember that this is a necessary move. Bryant was playing an unsustainable minutes load and stood as the rare aged veteran not sitting out occasional games for rest. The fatigue had become obvious in his play, with Bryant speaking openly about his soreness and his shooting percentage plummeting.

Even after sitting Tuesday, Scott sounded as if Bryant may require additional time off, so this isn't surprising, save for the rest coming on such a marquee day for the league.

"It might be something I have to do periodically, along with trying to get the minutes down," Scott said earlier this week. "Sometimes I'll have to give him days off as well as games off."

Bryant has been publicly supportive of Scott's decision. Thursday, he said old age was the reason for his needing a rest, with his knees, Achilles and more experiencing soreness.

"It's extremely difficult," Bryant said of missing this particular game. "Especially playing here, playing on Christmas Day and playing in this city. I love playing here. The fans have always been great. There's always a lot of energy in the building."

Bryant's Lakers teammates seemed to embrace the opportunity to step up in his stead earlier in the week. That's been the case all season, even when Bryant hits the bench, as the Lakers have been shockingly better without their top scorer.

That's basically the exact opposite of what you'd expect from a player of Bryant's caliber. Some of that can be explained by Bryant drawing the toughest defensive assignments, playing against other starting lineups and what remains generally a small sample, but if the Lakers win again Thursday, there's sure to be exploration into Bryant's impact on his teammates.

In 27 games, the 36-year-old Bryant is averaging 24.6 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.9 assists, but he's shooting only 37.2 percent from the floor. He's using 36.4 percent of the team's offensive possessions, a mark that would be the fourth-largest share of a team's possessions since 1977-78.

With their top scorer sidelined, Wayne Ellington drew the start, but it was a team effort in stepping up. Seven different players scored in double-figures Tuesday with all 10 who played taking at least five field-goal attempts. Nick Young stands as the most obvious option to take on an additional workload, because, well, just ask him.