Bryant limps off in loss

It may have been hard to determine who was the favorite of the audience Tuesday at Wynn Las Vegas. But a mile or so away at the MGM Grand Garden, there was no debate who the most popular person was.

Kobe Bryant was back in town, and Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders could only wish they had a scintilla of the adulation that the fans had for Bryant.

He heard the cheers from the moment he stepped on the court. Every time he touched the ball, the fans shrieked — and snapped photos from their cellphones. And whenever he finished a play, they went bonkers for him.

The 37-year-old Bryant played 18 minutes and scored 10 points before leaving the game in the third quarter with a contusion to his left calf, and the Lakers fell to 1-4 in the preseason with a 107-100 loss to the Sacramento Kings in front of 11,618.

The Kings, who rested star center DeMarcus Cousins and improved to 4-1 on the preseason, got a big game off the bench from veteran guard Marco Belinelli, who scored 17 points, and 16 from guard Darren Collison.

Sacramento led by as many as 18 early in the third quarter as the Lakers were unable to rally minus Bryant, who left with just over eight minutes to go in the third quarter and didn't return. Bryant was not available to reporters after the game. But Lakers coach Byron Scott said the injury was not serious and he expects Bryant to be available Saturday when the Lakers play Golden State.

"He's fine," Scott said of Bryant. "He's as tough as they come. But when (trainer) Gary (Vitti) went with him to the locker room, it was a concern."

Bryant has said on more than one occasion during the preseason that he doesn't know what he is going to do after this season, if he'll continue to play or if this is the end of the line.

But the future Hall of Famer could very well find himself back in Las Vegas this summer. He has talked to USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo about playing in one final Olympics, and while that determination is a long way off from being made, it wouldn't be that big a shock to see Bryant in the Mendenhall Center come July at Team USA's training camp.

Bryant was part of two gold medal-winning teams in 2008 in Beijing and 2012 in London, and he has a lot of equity built up with the national team.

Right now, Bryant's sole focus is on the Lakers and the upcoming NBA season, which tips off Oct. 27 at the Staples Center against Minnesota. He appears to have recovered from rotator cuff surgery, and Scott has plans to move him out of the backcourt and back to small forward, a position he played early in his career.

That wasn't the case Tuesday, as Bryant played at the off-guard spot alongside Jordan Clarkson.

"I don't know what to expect," Bryant said prior to the Lakers' arrival in Las Vegas. "My philosophy has always been — whatever you are asked to do, try to be the best at doing that. Whatever the role is, you've got to figure it out. And whatever it is, try to do it to the best of your abilities."

Obviously, the Lakers are not feeling compelled to rush Bryant, especially in light of his getting dinged Tuesday. He has played an average of 18 minutes in Los Angeles' first five games. But Scott likes what he has seen so far in the preseason from his star player.

"He's getting there," Scott said. "He's knocking off the rust and you can see the old Kobe coming back a little more with each day."

Scott said he and Bryant have talked about finding the right number of minutes to help him get ready for opening night while also making sure he doesn't overdo it.

"He's fine," Scott said with the plan. "A lot of it is based on how he feels."

Bryant, who has appeared in just 41 games the past two years because of injuries, said all the work he has put in to recover will be worth it if he can help lead the Lakers back to respectability after the team posted a franchise-worst 21-61 record last season.

"I'm excited to be back on the court," he said. "I'm excited to be out there with these young players that are starting their careers and journeys. I'm excited to help them out and kind of show them the things that I've learned.

"I'm as excited for this season as I've been in a long time."

Bryant said he'll know when it's time to walk away. Right now, that's not where his thought process is.

"I honestly don't know," he said. "I thought about it a little bit in terms of — what is the deciding factor? How do players actually know when it's time to hang it up?

"Everybody kind of gives (the media) the standard, cookie-cutter answers — relaxing, golfing, spending time with the family, things like that. But really, how do you truly know? And I don't know. I'll have a much better answer for you when that time comes for me."

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj