Sefolosha, acquired in a trade with the Bulls last week, showed flashes of his defensive reputation during a 107-94 loss to the Lakers on Tuesday night at the Ford Center.

"If we can get those two to play with great effort and intensity like they showed tonight, that's all we want from them," Brooks said. "Scoring, it's a plus ... I thought both guys played a pretty good game tonight on Kobe (Bryant)."

With Sefolosha primarily guarding him, Bryant scored only 10 first-half points.

"Kobe is Kobe," Sefolosha said. "I look up in the third and all of a sudden he has 20. I was like, 'What happened?' I felt like I did a decent job on him. I felt I made him earn every basket that he made."

Both players have a reputation for their defense. Oddly enough, Weaver has produced his two highest scoring games of the season (19 and 16 points) since Sefolosha joined the team last weekend.

"It's going well. We're pushing each other," Weaver said. "He came in with a great attitude. I think we click pretty well together. That's what practice is for, to learn each other's game."

The Lakers are a good example how role players are instrumental in compiling the league's best record. Kobe Bryant is a superstar. Pau Gasol is an All-Star. But Lamar Odom, Luke Walton, Derek Fisher, Jordan Farmar, Trevor Ariza and Sasha Vujacic are solid complementary parts.

"With Kevin, Jeff and Russell, we have guys you will lean to," Weaver said. "Guys like me and Thabo can be part of the other pieces you need to help this team any way we can."

Sefolosha is excited about his new team and the future.

"We know we have no chance to get to the playoffs, but with Kyle, Russell, Kevin and Jeff, we're all young," Sefolosha said. "We want to get better. We're building. The future looks great."