Despite the additions of Dwight Howard and Steve Nash in the offseason, the Los Angeles Lakers have struggled mightily this season, putting together a 17-25 record through their first 42 games of the season.  That abysmal record had many suggesting that perhaps the team would be better off if their high-scoring superstar, Kobe Bryant, ditched his shoot-first mentality for a more t

eam-oriented approach.  Well, he did just that on Friday, and it resulted in a victory over the Utah Jazz.  So he decided to try it once again on Sunday, and the result this time was an even more impressive victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Kobe came up just short of recording a triple-double on the afternoon, but his 21 points, 14 assists, nine rebounds, one steal and one block did help his team record the 105-96 win over the first-place Thunder.

Following Sunday's performance, Kobe has now recorded 14 assists and nine rebounds while scoring fewer than 22 points in back-to-back games.  Interestingly enough, both of those games have resulted in wins for the Lakers, and yesterday's also earns Bryant the “Stat Line of the Night” for Sunday, January 27, 2013.