As he sat on the dais before a packed news conference, with 450-500 media credentialed for his final game, Bryant donned his jersey. It seemed like he didn't want to take it off, to move on and leave his lifelong obsession behind, but he laughed at the notion. "I just figured, tonight I'd come in here early since I know you [media] have deadlines and stuff," Bryant said. "It's not like I have to ice. What takes a long time is I have to ice, I have to stretch, [receive physical therapy]. [But] what am I doing that for? The treadmill tomorrow? I figured I'd come in here a lot faster and get going."
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Still, Utah sits atop of the West standings for a reason, and even without Mitchell at the helm, are formidable to say the least. Los Angeles defeating them by a rather sound 12-point win sends a message across the league. Schroder knows this all too well.
Milwaukee Bucks: It likely won't factor too much into anything, but HoopsHype reports that Joe Johnson has a workout scheduled with the Bucks for later this week. Johnson is 39 and hasn't played in the NBA since the 2017-18 season but he does have 20,405 career points on his resume. Austin Rivers and Isaiah Thomas are two other free agent scorers the Bucks have been linked to over the past month.
Detroit Pistons: Rookie first-rounder Killian Hayes has played four games since returning from a torn hip labrum, but right now he's off the fantasy radar in virtually all leagues. The best option in Detroit's backcourt is veteran Cory Joseph, who has put up 11.7 PPG, 6.1 APG, and 1.2 SPG in 11 games since coming over from Sacramento. The one big knock on Joseph, however, is he's a point guard who has made only 0.5 3PG over the course of his career.Washington Wizards
Beal has ascended to another level as a scorer in each of the past three seasons. No matter the situation, he's always answered the call and given the Wizards what they needed on the offensive end. New Orleans Pelicans
Whenever Parker is able to officially clear the NBA's health and safety protocols and join the team, he is likely to compete with Semi Ojeleye and Grant Williams for minutes behind Jayson Tatum as the team's backup power forward.Utah Jazz