Lakers lose to Phoenix, 125-105, while Kobe Bryant sits
Kobe Bryant sat out because of a sore left shin. His teammates were painful to watch Saturday.
The Lakers lost to the Phoenix Suns, 125-105, giving up a season high in points while forcing a season-low three turnovers at US Airways Center.
Bryant was sidelined because of a condition called tenosynovitis. There is no timetable for his return, though he will be re-evaluated Monday in New Orleans before the Lakers play the Hornets that night.
Bryant was kicked in the shin last Saturday against New Orleans and the sensitivity in the area became progressively worse. The Lakers tried putting him in a walking boot a few days later, and he felt better between games but experienced pain again in the area after a game.
Tenosynovitis is a condition in which a tendon sheath becomes inflamed, causing soreness whenever the tendon slides in and out of the sheath. Bryant was noticeably limping in the fourth quarter of the Lakers’ 112-107 loss Friday to Houston.
“It’s very painful,” said longtime Lakers trainer Gary Vitti. “He’s been playing with this and it’s not getting any better. Really the only way to stop it is to shut him down. That’s why we put him in a boot. But we put him in the boot, he comes out, he feels better and then he plays and we’re back to square one.”
Bryant’s shin hurts whenever he flexes his foot, Vitti said.
The Lakers were pretty much pained throughout Saturday’s game.
Shannon Brown left them last December via free agency and reminded them of it Saturday, scoring 24 points. Reserve guards Michael Redd and Sebastian Telfair scored 17 and 12 points, respectively ... in the first half.
Andrew Bynum had 23 points but didn’t shoot well in two areas. He made only 10 of a career-high 27 shots and was three of nine from the free-throw line.
Pau Gasol had a season-high 30 points and also took 13 rebounds.
The Lakers’ reserves were again wildly ineffective, outscored by those of the Suns, 58-10.
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