With Derek Fisher no longer on the Lakers, Metta World Peace has taken a bigger leadership role.

World Peace has been more talkative on the court and during timeouts.

"It's something I've done since I was a kid," the Lakers forward said Wednesday. "I've always been the leader, but when I got here it was Fisher and Kobe [Bryant], so I had to find other ways to participate and contribute.

"Kobe's not playing right now, so it's definitely a comfortable situation to be a leader. I'm in better shape now, so I can actually show that I've improved. And then when Kobe gets back, I'm definitely assisting him. I'm the second-oldest guy on the team."

World Peace scored 26 points in Wednesday's 98-84 victory over the Spurs, his high since coming to the Lakers.