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2003

Issue 79/July 10, 2003

There has been a ton going on in the world of Kobe Bryant lately. First of all, sexual assault allegations have been made against him by a 19 year old Colorado woman. His attorney, Pamela Mackey, says he is innocent and "expects to be completely exonerated". An arrest warrant accuses Kobe of attacking the woman at a resort in Eagle County on June 30. Kobe was in Colorado June 30-July 2 for knee surgery. He flew back to Colorado last Friday, surrendered to authorities and was released on $25,000 bail. However, it wasn't until Sunday thay his arrest was announced. District Attorney Mark Hurlbert said it will probably be a week before he decides whether or not to file charges. So, I guess we'll have to take this thing day by day and see what unfolds!

Now onto more important things, Kobe also had shoulder surgey in June. He injured himself when he went to the rim for a dunk and jammed his shoulder during a playoff game against Minnesota on April 22. He played the next 10 games with the injury. During the surgery had an inflamed bursa removed and a frayed labrum trimmed in his right shoulder. It is possible that he will not be able to play for Team USA in the Olympic qualifying tournament in August, but the Lakers expect he'll be ready by the start of training camp in October.

Another thing that happend in June was Kobe mending a rift that developed with his parents when he married Vanessa. He said the rift developed because his parents did not know her, and objected to their marriage. "These great things were happening ... but I didn't have anyone to share it with," he said. "I was starting my own family with my wife and everything was going great, but you just want your parents there with you." Kobe's recently born daughter (Natalia), helped in bringing him and his parents back together.

Wow, June was such a big month for Kobe. On June 23, Kobe signed a deal with Nike for an undisclosed amount. Kobe paid $8 million to get out of his six-year contract with Adidas about a year ago, and wore many different shoes this past season.

The last bit of news is that Kobe will most likely be a free agent in 2004. According to ESPN's Jim Gray, Bryant plans to opt out of his contract because he isn't sure what will happen to Phil Jackson; he wants to see what the Lakers' plans for the future are; and because he has never had the chance to test the free-agent market. Additionally, he wants to see what Shaq's condition and motivation are like at that time. Basically, Kobe is concerned with the team's chances of winning a championship it seems. Phil Jackson commented, "I thought it was a little premature to make that statement. . . Kobe exercising his option, that's not beyond the realm of reason. We've anticipated the possibility for a long time, but we'll wait until we hear it from him."
- By: Molly

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