LOS ANGELES (AP) — Lakers coach Phil Jackson says Kobe Bryant had fluid drained from his right knee a while ago.
Before the opener of the Western Conference finals on Monday night, Jackson claimed the procedure wasn’t unusual for the Lakers’ leading scorer and former league MVP.
Bryant strained his knee during the season, and had it drained at least once or twice before when it swelled, Jackson said.
The 2009 NBA finals MVP missed four of the Lakers’ last five regular-season games to rest a litany of injuries, including a gimpy left ankle and an arthritic finger.
