The Los Angeles Lakers snatched their second consecutive victory on Thursday night thanks to Kobe Bryant’s heroics. The 20-year veteran put up another spectacular performance and his timely baskets late in the game were what got the Lakers over the hump. After his 38 point game on Tuesday, Bryant followed it up with 27 points and 12 rebounds against the Pelicans.

Rookie D’Angelo Russell had himself a solid night off the bench as he played just shy of 30 minutes. The guard out of Ohio State put up 13 points to go along with his three rebounds and three assists.

After the win, Russell spoke to the media and discussed how his rookie season has played out thus far, via Lakers Nation reporter Serena Winters:

D'Angelo Russell (on TWC):

“I’m in love with this process. The bad, the ups & downs, the process of getting to where I want to be." — Serena Winters (@SerenaWinters) February 5, 2016

This season has been a tough one for Russell as his playing time has been quite sporadic. Nevertheless, Russell has remained a consummate professional through the tough times and he will eventually get the minutes he deserves.

The Lakers have now won two straight games after suffering through a ten game losing streak. Although none of this will matter in terms of climbing the Western Conference standings, it is nice seeing the team come out on the winning end.

The team will be back on the court Saturday night when they pay a visit to one of the best teams in the league, the San Antonio Spurs. The Lakers have won these past two games against sub-par teams, so they will really be tested against the Spurs.