Despite aggravating his ankle sprain against Charlotte on Wednesday, Kobe Bryant is expected to play against Denver on Friday.
Phil Jackson confirmed as much subsequent to Friday morning’s shootaround at L.A.’s practice facility, saying that Bryant participated in limited fashion, though he received treatment during some of the drills.
That Bryant would again battle through an injury comes as no surprise, of course; in fact, Kobe has not missed a game due to injury since Dec. 8, 2006 against Atlanta, when he sat with a newly sprained ankle before returning two days later.
Denver is dealing with its own ankle injury, as All-Star Carmelo Anthony has missed six consecutive games with a sprained ankle, and told Yahoo! Sports that he would not play until it was 100 percent.
The Lakers won’t officially know Anthony’s status until game time, however, and Phil Jackson said that L.A. would prepare for both his inclusion and his exclusion from the contest.