BRYANT `DESERVED' HIS SUSPENSION BUT LAKER OFFERS NO APOLOGIES TO MILLER.

Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer

EL SEGUNDO - He moved with the grace of a skilled heavyweight, bobbing toward the Gatorade cooler, then weaving back toward the media throng, ready and ever willing to face the one-two punch of cameras and questions.

Kobe Bryant, Lakers star and amateur pugilist, offered an easy smile as he approached the bustling mass of microphones Monday, carrying himself with that old, familiar grace and composure - the very traits he lacked at a critical moment Friday night.

Speaking publicly for the first time about his fight with Reggie Miller, Bryant owned up to his mistake without hesitation and accepted the two-game suspension as just.

``I deserved it,'' he said. ``Probably deserved even a little bit more.''

For getting himself suspended, Bryant has asked for teammates' forgiveness. But for swinging at the trash-talking Miller, Bryant has little regret.

``Not really, no,'' he said. ``I've apologized to my teammates, because I can't join them out there battling and fighting on the court. But not as far as he goes, no.''

Bryant won't repeat what Miller said - ``That stuff out there stays on the court'' - but he hinted it was so deeply offensive and personal that it justified a physical response. It was, he said, a matter of respect.

``Simple as that,'' Bryant said. ``I don't believe fighting is the answer at all. I don't. But sometimes as a man, you have to do what you have to do. ... Trash talking is something, it's part of the game. There's a thin line between taking things from the basketball court and taking things off the court.''

Miller presumably ventured into the latter area when he and Bryant faced off after the final buzzer.

``This stuff has happened in the past with this guy,'' Bryant said. ``I reacted out of frustration, out of anger, I guess.''

Miller has claimed the conflict had nothing to do with him but with Bryant's own ``issues.''

``Reggie doesn't know me at all,'' Bryant said. ``And I'll never argue with fools. Never. It's a waste of time.''

In a separate conversation, Bryant expressed surprise at the intense media attention and criticism he's drawn. He was perplexed by characterizations of him as the ``aggressor'' in the conflict. Although Bryant threw the first punch, he views Miller as the instigator - a view supported by the fact the NBA gave Miller the same two-game suspension.

Of course, the harsh reaction to Bryant's punch stems in large part from widespread public shock. Fans and media have come to know Bryant as the well-mannered, mature-beyond-his-years superstar and perhaps thought him incapable of such unbridled anger.

Shaquille O'Neal affirmed as much.

``It just shows you that a kid with that much poise is human,'' O'Neal said. ``All the things he's done, all the pressure he has to go through, it just shows you that he's human. And I'm glad he did it ... because I thought he wasn't human.''

The two-game suspension ends after tonight's home game against New Jersey. Bryant will be on the court Wednesday night in Utah, and coach Phil Jackson expects he'll return chastened by the experience.

``We talked about it (Sunday), and I said, 'You know, just dial it down another degree. You can still be aggressive, you can still be feisty and be combative. But we don't need belligerent,' '' Jackson said. ``You forget about this guy being a 23-year-old man and he's in a position in his life that not too many guys in this NBA have been in.''

Bryant entertained a dozen or so questions but was eager to put the matter behind him.

``We can sit here and talk about this until we're all blue in the face,'' he said. ``The fact of the matter is, I made a mistake, it wasn't the best decision in the world. At the time, I felt like it was the right decision. I have to deal with the consequences, I have to deal with the criticism and that's it. And then I just move on and continue to grow and mature as a man, that's the bottom line.''

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