Dejected over not getting to play in Minnesota with Kevin Garnett, Juwan Howard could end up a teammate of another superstar: LeBron James.

Howard, a 13-year veteran forward whose contract was bought out by the Timberwolves on Monday, would fit nicely with James and the Cleveland Cavaliers, who are desperate for experienced frontline help.

With restricted free agent Anderson Varejao still unsigned in a messy contract holdout, the defending Eastern Conference champions have been exploring the possibility of signing Howard to improve their depth before Wednesday's season opener against the Dallas Mavericks.

"I hope we get him," James said after practice Monday. "He can help us. We need a guy to play down low."

Howard has averaged 16.1 points and 7.1 rebounds in his career. Last season, he averaged 9.7 points and 5.9 rebounds in 26 minutes for Houston.

The Rockets traded him to Minnesota in June for guard Mike James. Howard had wanted to play with Garnett and spoke with regret about choosing Orlando over Minnesota the last time he was a free agent.

But when the Timberwolves pulled off their blockbuster deal and sent Garnett to Boston in July, Howard made it clear he was not interested in being part of a youth movement in Minnesota. He requested a trade, but the Wolves found no takers for Howard, who was owed $6.88 million this year and $7.38 million next year.

The Cavaliers might be able to get him for much less.

"Any time you can bring in a veteran like Juwan with his playing ability and character, you have to explore that," Cavs coach Mike Brown said.

The Cavs made two other moves to finalize their opening-day roster, signing swingman Demetris Nichols and waiving forward Noel Felix.

The club did not disclose contract terms on Nichols, who averaged 4.8 points in five exhibition games with the New York Knicks, who waived him last week.

His addition will give Brown more bench depth. He could also help offset the loss of forward Sasha Pavlovic, a restricted free agent, who like Varejao, remains unsigned in a contract dispute.

The 6-foot-8 Nichols averaged 18.9 points last season at Syracuse and was a first-team All-Big East selection. Nichols, 23, was taken by Portland with the No. 53 overall pick before he was traded on draft day to New York for a second-round selection.

Felix played in three preseason games, averaging 2.7 points.

Kobe Bryant remains a Laker -- for now.

Because of the difficulty involved in trading an NBA superstar, Bryant could play in a Los Angeles uniform for days, weeks or months, no matter how much he wants out or those in charge wish to move him.

Bryant professes to be very close to his coach and quite fond of his teammates. That's right, the same teammates he essentially badmouthed last spring when he complained about a lack of talent around him and asked to be traded.

"I'm very close to all of them," Bryant said after practice Monday. "We've got some good pieces here. The talent on this team is good. Getting guys healthy, that's the big key."

The front office? That's clearly another matter, especially since Lakers owner Jerry Buss said earlier this month that he would listen to offers for Bryant, making his remarks after things had quieted with the start of training camp.

Bryant called the front office a mess when he asked to be traded five months ago. The Lakers had lost 27 of their last 43 games to finish 42-40 in the regular season, then were eliminated by the Phoenix Suns in five games in the first round of the playoffs.

Now, he's saying nothing of the sort.

"I'm still a Laker. I'm here. I'm ready to play," Bryant said while acknowledging he wasn't quite 100 percent because of the sprained right wrist that caused him to miss the Lakers' final exhibition game. "My focus is here with this ballclub. Wherever I play, I'll be ready. I'm focusing on this team. Dr. Buss said business is business. I understand that."

Bryant has pointed to improved defense as a must if the Lakers are going to accomplish anything of substance in the rugged Western Conference this season, starting Tuesday night when they open against the Houston Rockets.

"We're doing better. That's something we're all focusing on," he said. "It's just about helping out as a unit. As a group, that's how you win ballgames. Defense is the key in the playoffs, no doubt about that."

Once adversaries, Bryant and coach Phil Jackson have grown close, to the point where Jackson has served as a confidante since the two-time reigning scoring champion asked to be traded.

In fact, the 62-year-old Jackson has been offered a contract extension, but hasn't signed it yet, meaning this could be his final year as coach of the Lakers. He signed a three-year, $30 million contract before the 2005-06 season.

But even Jackson became peeved recently, saying Bryant doesn't appear to be giving his all.

"Obviously he hasn't thrown his heart and soul into performing on the floor," Jackson said over the weekend. "That hurts me a little bit. ... He was going to work at this thing and put his full being into this. Right now, he's having a hard time doing that."

Jackson seemed comfortable Monday with where things stood with his star player.

"He had live legs today," Jackson said. "He didn't shoot the ball very often. You can tell (Bryant's wrist) is still bothering him."

When asked about a weekend report that the Lakers had spoken with the Chicago Bulls about a possible trade involving Bryant, Jackson said: "We're listening. That's part of the deal. Chicago has been one of the teams. There's nothing imminent."

Jackson did say he hoped a resolution would be reached "sooner than later."

"The ultimate thing is it's important to move forward as soon as possible," he said.

Jackson also said he was getting closer to making a decision on his future.

"I can see the light at the end of the tunnel," he said.

Bryant reacted to Jackson's comments over the weekend by saying the coach didn't have to worry about his readiness, and seemed to have put it behind him Monday.

"There's really not much more to say. He's the coach, I'm the player," Bryant said. "I'm not getting into that. Ask him."

The Lakers haven't won a playoff series since Shaquille O'Neal was traded and Jackson left following the 2003-04 season. And that's the basis of Bryant's discontent.

But the Lakers have said they're not going to trade Bryant unless it's worth their while. The 29-year-old star is owed $88.6 million over the next four seasons, but can terminate his contract in two years.

Bryant also holds the NBA's only no-trade clause, and has a trade kicker of more than $9 million spread over two years for salary-cap purposes, meaning teams basically have to come up with players earning at least $20 million this year to make a deal, making it even more difficult to move him.

It seems unlikely the Lakers would trade him to a Western Conference team, further limiting their options.

The Lakers weren't able to accomplish much in the way of offseason additions, with Derek Fisher the only newcomer of substance, although first-round draft pick Javaris Crittenton has impressed.

Fisher should help, since he figures to be a steadying influence and defensive upgrade in the backcourt.

"Stability. He's extremely steady, a knockdown shooter," Bryant replied when asked what Fisher brought to the team.

Bryant and Fisher were teammates with the Lakers from 1996-2004.

"We just picked up right where we left off," Bryant said.

Oft-injured Lamar Odom, recovering from offseason surgery on his left shoulder, isn't quite ready to go, leaving the Lakers without their leading rebounder and second-leading scorer from last season for at least a few games.

"We've been without him since the start of training camp, so we have a way to play," Jackson said. "Last year we didn't have Kobe and we found a way to win our first two games without him."

Ronny Turiaf is likely to replace Odom in the starting lineup.

The Lakers are hopeful veterans Chris Mihm and Kwame Brown, and young Andrew Bynum will do a better job in the middle than last year, when Mihm couldn't play because of an injured ankle, Brown missed 41 games due to ankle and shoulder injuries, and Bynum faded badly down the stretch.

"Us going through a lot of stuff has made the team closer," forward Luke Walton said. "Everybody's out there communicating, talking. Fish has done a great job of bringing everybody together."

Fisher is more of a leader now than he was in his first stint with the Lakers.

"I like our talent," he said. "We have some versatility and depth at several positions. Defensively, we still have a long way to go, how to cover for each other and protect each other on the floor."