For the first time in 138 games, Kobe Bryant missed a game for the Lakers. He did not play against the Suns Saturday because of an inflammation in his left shin. He injured his shin last week against the Hornets when he was inadvertantly kicked.

Kobe was scratched from the lineup with just about 15 minutes to tipoff. The team says there's no timetable for the injury.

Via ESPN LA, Bryant has a specific shin inflammation that simply requires rest.

Lakers trainer Gary Vitti said Bryant has tenosynovitis, where the tendon sheath in the shin has become inflamed, causing Bryant irritation when his movement causes his tendon to slide in and out of the sheath.

"He's been playing with this and it's not getting any better," Vitti said. "Really the only way to stop it is to shut him down."

Vitti said immobilizing Bryant's shin with the walking boot in between games had netted positive results, but the pain would return after Bryant played.

Kobe, being the tough as nails player that he is, played the last four games for the Lakers with the injury. He wore a protective boot on off days and sat out shootarounds to try and get it to heal.
Bryant is leading the league in scoring at 28.1 points per game and is fourth in the league in minutes played.

During that Hornets game, Bryant started out a horrific 0-of-16 from the floor before finishing up at 3-for-21 and 11 points in a tight win over New Orleans. He did bounce back and play better after the injury averaging 30.8 ppg over the next four.

Devin Ebanks, a rarely utilized reserve, started at shooting guard in place of Kobe against Phoenix.