Thunder thumps Kobe-less Lakers by 40

December 17, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers forward Julius Randle (30) moves the ball against Houston Rockets forward Donatas Motiejunas (20) during the second half at Staples Center. The Lakers’ final road game of the season will be in Oklahoma City on April 11…. Cleveland is next at 18,979.

Six nights after handing the Warriors their first loss of the season and ending a 28-game, regular-season winning streak, the Bucks almost dealt Golden State its first home loss since January 27 against Chicago. Bryant made that official last month when he announced his intention to retire, citing no longer having a desire to to withstand the physical toll and demands a full season takes on his body. Let us know in the comments. Sometimes you need get thrown into the fire and be able to pick yourself up and adapt through adversity before any proclamation of stardom is claimed.

Bryant is the NBA’s highest-paid player this season with a $25 million salary bestowed on him by grateful Lakers owner Jim Buss despite his recent injury problems.

“My body has been through a lot, physically, its been through a lot, and then on top of the fact that it is very easy to forget that I haven’t played because of it”, he said. Brown also posted only four points on 2-of-9 shooting and collected four fouls. There was a standing ovation. The Lakers are among the NBA’s worst teams for a third straight season. “Kobe would obviously like to be going out in a different way. I join Kobe’s millions of fans around the world in congratulating him on an outstanding National Basketball Association career and thank him for so many thrilling memories”. Young players don’t always react well when they feel that they are being singled out. “I thought he probably had at least another year, but this year isn’t over”.

However, the 37-year-old did say it was tough to come up with just 5 players due to the multitude of talent he faced throughout his career. Bryant was drafted 13th overall by the Charlotte Hornets and was traded off to the Lakers in 1996. Or maybe, you know, a recruiter? “He wasn’t bland, he wasn’t neutral”, Corb said. “We were just moving the basketball, playing the right way”, Oklahoma City point guard Russell Westbrook told reporters. Players, like D’Angelo Russell, wanting to play a certain way, but a head coach and maybe a front office doing its best to sustain a losing framework and keep this about being Bryant’s retirement tour, as if to blur the tanking from sight.

In just 21 minutes, Jones scored 16 points with 13 coming in the third.

Retiring NBA legend Kobe Bryant has labelled Australian college sensation Ben Simmons as a player with “a tremendous amount of potential”, providing the teenager with some advice if he ends up at the Los Angeles Lakers next season.

“Five games is obviously a small sample”, he said.