Kobe Bryant (Photo : Reuters)
Kobe Bryant, and the Los Angeles Lakers, opened his 20th preseason with a 90-71 loss to the Utah Jazz.
Bryant, who's playing in his first game after injuring his right shoulder last January, started at small forward and finished the game with 5 points on 1/5 shooting. He played all 12 minutes of the 1st quarter.
Along with Kobe, the team's young core consisting of Julius Randle, D'Angelo Russell, and Jordan Clarkson showed glimpses of what the future holds for the purple and gold.
Randle began the night with a dunk off a nice Russell feed, while Clarkson continued to show his brilliance and steadiness on the floor.
The NBA All-Rookie First Team member tallied 9 points and 5 rebounds in 21 minutes of action. However, what truly stood out tonight was his overall defensive improvement - highlighted by a block on Gordon Hayward before getting a layup on the other end.
In the second half, Nick Young started in lieu of Kobe Bryant as part of the Lakers' maintenance and precautionary measure. Young made 4 out of his 10 shots en route to posting 10 points.
After establishing a 48-35 lead at the early moments of the 3rd quarter, the Lakers allowed the Jazz to mount a 15-2 run to tie the game at 50-apiece.
From there, both teams emptied their bench to finish the game - even with the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu, Hawaii continuously chanting Kobe's name.
Newly acquired Lakers guard, Lou Williams, led the team in scoring with 14 points on top of 4 assists in 27 minutes.
Veterans, Metta World Peace (calf) and Marcelo Huertas (hamstring) didn't play, as well as rookie Larry Nance Jr. (back).
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Utah Jazz will play again in the same venue on Tuesday.
