Kobe Bryant offers no hints about his future at (his last?) Lakers media day

Monday afternoon brought Lakers media day, the annually occurring chaos in which dozens of reporters, broadcasters and photographers push and shove to be able to hear what players say about the upcoming season.

It was kind of humorous. The Lakers were terrible last season but the media’s interest — and whatever embedded drama accompanied it — seemingly remains the same.

Kobe Bryant was a bit subdued, offering shrugs where defiance sometimes roared. Nick Young and Metta World Peace weren’t so subtle, practically kissing the midcourt stripe because they were back with the Lakers.

Coach Byron Scott offered a mild rebuke of the pundits themselves, many of whom placed the Lakers near the bottom of the Western Conference in preseason prognostications.

Scott surely didn’t think a 21-61 record would go away quietly. Or did he?

He wants the Lakers to “play a little angry” if they read any negativity. And if they don’t, “I’ll show it to them,” Scott added.

This will be a hodgepodge of a team, a blend of age (Bryant turned 37 last month), youth (D’Angelo Russell, Jordan Clarkson and Julius Randle) and reclaimed property (World Peace, who sat out last season because nobody in the NBA wanted him).

Reputations will try to be rehabbed in the case of Young, who last season struggled horribly (36.6% shooting accuracy) and picked the wrong time for clowning around after a rare Lakers victory. Roy Hibbert also needs some image restoration, the former All-Star coming to the Lakers for the cheap price of a 2019 second-round pick after fading with the Indiana Pacers.

Bryant said he was unsure of two concepts — what he expected of the team and his own playing ability.

“It’s a big question mark,” he said of the Lakers, who have never missed the playoffs in three consecutive seasons but are two-thirds of the way there. “Guys have never played together.”

As for his own mortality, a career about to enter its 20th season, Bryant simply didn’t know if this would be his final media day.

“Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t,” he said. “Hell if I know.”

For what it’s worth, Russell seemed unfazed by anything, offering excitement and optimism in quality sound bites.

On possibly being overwhelmed as a rookie: “It’s here, all you guys right here around me right now, it’s something that I prepared for. I dreamt it and it’s here, so I’ve got to take advantage of it.”

On envisioning his first assist to Bryant: “It’ll be great, man. He told me he likes to shoot the ball. So if I give it to him, it’s his job to finish it.”

And on World Peace: “Metta for president. That dude is great.”

How much World Peace can contribute is up for debate. He grumbled about playing time with the New York Knicks in 2013-14 while averaging only 4.8 points but recently signed a non-guaranteed one-year contract with the Lakers.

“I don’t know if it’s a ‘Metta-morphosis,’ but it’s a warm return,” he said. “I love having the Laker patch stitched on a yellow jersey. It just feels very, very comfortable.”

World Peace reminded the Lakers of his physical presence by dueling in the post with Randle in half-court scrimmages this summer.

Randle said he felt fine 11 months after suffering a broken leg in last season’s opener. He doesn’t get as fatigued as he did while playing four summer-league games in July. Then he rolled his eyes when asked if there would be a minutes limitation in games going forward.

“Ask Gary Vitti,” he said, referencing the long-time Lakers trainer.

Vitti was part of Monday’s story lines too. This will be his last season of full-time duty after 32 years with the Lakers. He will be a consultant next year, no longer traveling with the team.

One of the many players who spent time in Vitti’s training room last season was Young, the self-proclaimed “Swaggy P.”

Young pledged things would be better. He lost some of his Lakers followers because of his erratic behavior and was shopped around the league. Nobody wanted the three years and $16 million left on his contract.

He was asked some unusual questions Monday — “How many times have you been to China? What’s your favorite Chinese food?” (Twice and spicy chicken were the answers) — and offered some spin on his on-court failures.

“Soul searching?” he said. “I went in my bat cave and got my mind right. I feel good.”

Above all else, there was Bryant.

He shot a career-worst 37.3% last season and played only 35 games before suffering a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder. He did it by dunking in a game, adding to a list of relatively recent ailments.

“It wasn’t as bad as the Achilles’ [tendon],” he said of his off-season rehab. “So when I had rough days, I could always kind of look back and just remember what that summer was like, what that year and a half was like. That puts it in perspective for me.”

Possibly with an eye on the future, and perhaps thinking of Randle specifically, the Lakers’ hiring of James Worthy was “an extremely smart move,” Bryant said. Worthy will work with Lakers big men as a consultant, the team announced Monday. He will keep his gig as a TV analyst on TWC SportsNet.

Maybe Bryant will get some post advice from him too.

Bryant won’t be jumping over the rim as often as he used to, Scott acknowledged, but was “still probably the smartest player in this league.

“I expect Kobe to play great,” Scott added. “Not the Kobe we were so used to seeing 10 years ago or five years ago. But the hunger’s still there, that passion is still there.”

Follow Mike Bresnahan on Facebook and Twitter @Mike_Bresnahan

Times staff writer Alex Shultz contributed to this report.