Video: Mike D’Antoni on Kobe’s Defense, Miami and Earl Clark

After another solid defensive effort in the Lakers win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night, which they’ll need to amplify against the Miami Heat, the focus at practice was once again on defense. Impressed by Kobe’s ability to shut down Jennings the night before, D’Antoni still hasn’t decided whether Kobe will guard LeBron James, Dwayne Wade or switch off between the two.

Kobe also surprised D’Antoni in a completely different way Tuesday night. For the first time under D’Antoni, Kobe asked to rest in the first quarter, causing a bit of a mess with the rotation.

“I’m glad he did because he needs to do that when he gets tired… I hated it because I had to take him out of the game…that’s never good.”

On how the second unit came together:

“I didn’t think it was as much as the second team didn’t play as well, they didn’t finish.”

Plus, D’Antoni informs us that Earl Clark was sick on Wednesday, and the fatigue could have contributed to his decrease in production Tuesday night. Check out our video below, and click here for all of Lakers Nation’s practice videos.

Reporter: @SerenaWinters