Kobe Bryant returned to action after a five-game layoff due to an ankle injury on Tuesday, and quickly resumed being the deadliest closer in the league by scoring the Lakers’ last nine points including a 30-foot game-winning 3-pointer. He finished with 32 points on 13-of-19 shooting (including three 3-pointers), seven rebounds, six assists, three steals, and two blocks in 40 minutes of run. With 18 days of rest under his belt, he’s rested, and may be as dangerous as anybody not named LeBron for the rest of the year.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Sacramento: Sacramento Kings’ big man Spencer Hawes was inactive for Tuesday’s game. Head Coach Paul Westphal said he is helping Hawes to learn his “role.” This takes being in a coach’s doghouse to another level, as Westphal seems intent on breaking his young pup of a center.

Sacramento: The Kings have waived Larry Hughes, a source tells Adrian Wojnarkowski of Yahoo! Sports.
Hughes was only part of the Tracy McGrady deal to make the salaries work. He was never going to play for the Kings. Hughes can still give a little ball handing and scoring off the bench for a contender.

Miami: Miami Heat swingman Dorell Wright scored a season-high 26 points on 9-of-11 shooting off the bench on Tuesday, including 6-of-7 shooting from downtown. He also had seven rebounds, two steals and three blocks in 30 minutes. It’s important to remember that Dwyane Wade was sidelined, boosting Wright’s playing time well above his 19 minutes average.

Charlotte: Hornets backup guard Marcus Thornton unleashed a career-high 37 points on 15-of-22 shooting vs. the Cavaliers on Tuesday, adding three 3-pointers, two assists and two steals in 31 minutes.

Thornton scored a franchise-record 23 points in the second quarter alone, but didn’t start the second half despite his out-of-body experience. He lost his starting gig to veteran Morris Peterson (two points in 21 minutes) when he got injured a few weeks ago, but may have taken it back tonight.

Portland: Nicolas Batum has taken over for Martell Webster as the Portland Trail Blazers starting small forward. It’s a changing of the guard for the Blazers. Batum has been shooting it well enough lately to not be a liability on offense, and we know what he does defensively.

In what seems to be a continuing theme young players playing well, Kings center Spencer Hawes tied his career-high with 24 points on Saturday, adding nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks in a loss to the Rockets. Hawes was 10-of-16 from the field and even made his first 3-pointers of the season, going 2-of-3 from downtown. The Kings have reportedly been shopping around for another center (rumors linked them to Samuel Dalembert) but hopefully a few more games like this will curb that impulse.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Portland: Trail Blazers guard/forward Martell Webster started Saturday’s game over Andre Miller, finishing with a season-high 21 points 13 rebounds in only 31 minutes of work. Webster made 7-of-13 FGs and 4-of-7 three-pointers, with two assists, one turnover and seems to have landed a starting role in Portland Trail Blazers.

Chicago: Bulls PG Derrick Rose broke out for a season-high 28 points against the Nuggets on Saturday, making 11-of-20 FGs and 6-of-7 FTs with six rebounds, three assists and one steal. Rose continues to struggle with turnovers, committing five more on Saturday, and defense but no argument came be made against his offensive talent.

Denver: Nuggets SF Carmelo Anthony continued his stellar play while scoring 30 points on Saturday as the Denver Nuggets defeated the Bulls for their 15th consecutive home victory. Melo has scored 30+ points in nine of his first 13 games this season and appears to be a threat to win the scoring title.

San Antonio: San Antonio Spurs PG Tony Parker returned from a sprained ankle on Saturday, scoring 17 points, grabbing six rebounds and handing out eight assists in 32 minutes of play. Parker appeared to be playing well and not showing any ill effects from the injury.

Milwaukee: Bucks rookie guard Brandon Jennings scored 26 points on Saturday (24 of them coming in the second half) as the Bucks defeated the Grizzlies and improved their record to 8-3.

Detroit: Pistons G Ben Gordon scored 25 points in an overtime loss to the Jazz on Saturday, going 10-of-20 from the field, 2-of-4 from downtown, and 3-of-4 from the FT line. He added five rebounds, three assists and two steals, which is icing on the cake for Detroit’s explosive scoring guard. And after sitting out nearly all of the fourth quarter on Thursday, he logged 47 minutes in this game.

Utah: Jazz F Paul Millsap needed five stitches to close a gash above his right eye sustained during Saturday’s game, though he returned and played 34 minutes. Millsap, who had just four points (2-of-6 FGs), four rebounds and two steals, shouldn’t be in danger of missing any games.

Houston: Rockets forward Carl Landry scored 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds in 25 minutes against the Kings on Saturday. Landry made 6-of-8 FGs and 8-of-8 FTs, building on his recent string of excellent performances. He even blocked a shot, ending his block-less streak at three games.