Kobe Bryant was a guest on the "Loose Cannons" show on XTRA Sports 690/1150 AM and said it was "just intuition" that led him to believe that Karl Malone would retire. Malone, 41, had knee surgery in June and has not decided whether he will return for a 20th NBA season.

"I don't think he's coming back," said Bryant, who was then asked whether he had planned on Malone's return from a strategic perspective.

"Yeah, naw," Bryant said. "Plus it's not really fair to hold it over the guys' heads that are here. Like, the guys that we have here are working hard, practicing hard every day. It's kind of tough for them to be looking over their shoulder, wondering if he's going to come back and then everybody is going to disappear.

"They are here giving me 110%. It's really not fair for us to sit around and speculate how long this is going to go on. I mean, you can't sit up here and speculate for the remainder of the season whether or not he is going to come back. I mean, that's not fair to the guys that are working here."

Bryant and Malone live about six blocks apart in Newport Beach, but Malone's agent said his client "has not shared any of his personal thoughts with Kobe."

"Karl will decide his future on his own, and Kobe doesn't have any special insight at this time," Dwight Manley said.

The Lakers have saved a salary slot for Malone if he wants play for them, a decision expected to come next month.