No such thing as a (Kobe stopper) he's the badest man n the league. He had 35pts 2day. I jus try 2 make him work 4 every point. Respect!!!

Kobe will not play tonight's game against the Portland TrailBlazers because of a sprained left ankle. It's the first game he'll miss due to injury since December 8, 2006 in Atlanta.

Official release (Lakers.com):
"Lakers guard Kobe Bryant will miss Saturday evening’s game in Portland due to his sprained left ankle, an injury he originally suffered in Philadelphia on Jan. 29 and that he aggravated against Charlotte on Wednesday."

Kobe was asked about Kareem’s scoring record…

L.A. Times: He was appreciative after passing Jerry West to become the Lakers’ all-time scoring leader, calling it a "great honor," but is Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s all-time NBA mark a possibility? Time will be the final judge, as always, but Bryant said he would "probably" be able to do it.

Ok, it’s known that i hate Kobe, and Lebron played a great game…. but people gas him up wayyyyy to much. i mean, I was watching the top 5 plays of the night on NBA.com, and lebron was in it, not for an amazing dunk or block, but because he attempted save an inbounds pass. And yes, he didnt even end up saving it!!!

"Earlier, Bryant was looking forward to a physical game and was eager to see how the Lakers would respond to playing "smashmouth" basketball against Eastern Conference squads like Cleveland and Boston.

Afterward, he wasn't so sure the Lakers are rough enough.

"The mentality has to change a little bit playing against these teams," Bryant said. "These teams are physical, tough-minded, hard-nosed types of teams. That's not part of our DNA. We have to step up and match that and still play skillful basketball.""

"CLEVELAND -- As chants of "M-V-P" filled the electrified air, LeBron James locked his thumbs under his maroon jersey and made it pop off his chest.

The Cavaliers had beaten the NBA champions again, and James soaked in every second.

"This," he said, "is what I live for.""

"Few have accused Phil Jackson of dispensing too much information, but here’s how he explained a lackluster game by Andrew Bynum: "He wasn’t feeling well tonight. His energy level was low. He has a GI (tract) thing going on, and he went back into the locker room in the fourth quarter and relieved himself and came back. He threw up, is what he did.""

"Kobe Bryant needs to score 30 points tonight in order to reach the 25,000-point milestone for his career. Only 14 players in league history have scored that many points, none have done it at Bryant's age (31 years, 148 days).

What's more, Bryant is closing in on Jerry West's franchise record of 25,192 points. Barring an injury or illness, he could reach it while the Lakers are on their upcoming eight-game trip, which begins Thursday at Cleveland."

"I think he's a great, unbelievable dunker. He's awesome above the rim. He's in the category of Vince Carter, Michael Jordan, Dominique Wilkins."

Every Lakers game is a GOOD game.