LAKERS NOTEBOOK: KOBE HELPS QUAKE VICTIMS.

Byline: Howard Beck Staff Writer

Kobe Bryant wasn't looking for a heavy dose of perspective this week, but it came in the form of a news report and it affected him deeply.

Bryant, moved by stories he saw from earthquake-ravaged El Salvador, sent a sizable donation to the relief fund this week. Bryant has been active in local charities but said he had never made a contribution like this before.

``They're just human beings, man. Whatever you can do to help out, you just help out,'' he said.

Last Saturday's 7.6-magnitude quake killed at least 700 Salvadoreans and destroyed 120,000 homes. As of Friday, some 200,000 reportedly were in desperate need of food.

The story first hit Bryant on Monday night, as he sat and watched the news in the players' lounge before tipoff of the Lakers' game against Vancouver.

``They were showing some footage over there, some collapsed houses and people buried underneath the houses and so forth,'' he said. ``They had a number (for the Red Cross), saying that they take donations, contribute anything you can. And I felt for them.

``They had one story about a father who was living over here and he had three daughters over there. I think their ages were like 18, 19 and 20. One of the daughters was out at the library and the other two daughters who normally go, decided to stay at the house, and when the earthquake took place, the house just collapsed on them and buried them underneath the house. The other daughter survived. That story just touched me.''

Bryant declined to say how much he donated - ``that's not of importance'' - but said, ``If you saw that story, trust me, you'd do the same thing.''

To donate to the relief fund through the Red Cross, call 1-800-435-7669.

--Welcome back: Devean George, who began the season in the rotation, lost his playing time and then his roster spot, was activated Friday. He replaced rookie Slava Medvedenko, who was placed on the injured list with tendinitis in his right knee.

George, who played in just 17 games, averaging 7.0 minutes before going on the injured list Dec. 19 with an ear infection, hopes to regain the coaches' confidence, and his own.

``When I fell out of the rotation, I wasn't playing as well as I could have been playing, but now I'm ready to get another chance, and once I get out there, to try to improve and pick up where I left off,'' George said. ``I tried to work hard in practice and try to improve on some things that they wanted me to improve on. Now it's almost like I start all over again.