Kobe Bryant’s best moment of the 2015 season didn’t come on the court.

It came in the third quarter of the Lakers’ game against the Timberwolves on Wednesday night, a game the Lakers would go on to lose in overtime. In the third quarter, Bryant took head coach Byron Scott aside and told him not to put him back in the game. Youngsters D’Angelo Russell and Julius Randle, who Scott had inexplicably taken out of the starting lineup earlier this season, would finish the game.

It’s a startling and mature move from Bryant, who has realized what his head coach hasn’t: That the future of the Lakers depends on the development of Russell, Randle and Jordan Clarkson.

Scott has previously removed Russell late from close games, a perplexing move considering Russell was the second-overall pick in this year’s draft. He needs time on the court to get better, and too much of this season he’s either been sitting on the bench or handing the ball off to Kobe and watching him take contested jumpers. As Deadspin wrote earlier this season, he’s not going to get better in that situation.

On Wednesday night, Bryant realized that, and took a step back. He wanted to see how Russell and Randle would handle a tight game on the road, so he instructed Scott to do what Scott should have done on his own: Let the kids play.

Russell stepped up, hitting a game-tying runner as time expired in the fourth quarter, forcing the game to go to overtime. Bryant was ecstatic on the sideline, and was the first to congratulate Russell for the basket.

The Lakers weren’t able to hang on in overtime, but that’s irrelevant. The Lakers aren’t winning a title this year. Bryant will have his farewell tour, and he should get plenty of time to enjoy himself on the court.

But at a certain point, Scott needs to understand what Bryant does, that the future of the Lakers organization is with these young players, and they need time to find their stride on the court. It shouldn’t take a command from Bryant for Scott to understand that.