Kobe Bryant will try not to wear a splint on his right index finger this season. Bryant chose not to undergo surgery during the offseason due to the lengthy rehabilitation that would be necessary.
"If [the finger] gets whacked, maybe a game or so I'll have to put [the splint] on, but for the most part no," Bryant said. "I've been shooting without the tape. My shot feels a lot better. I can follow through with my fingers on the ball and get a better feel for it now than I did last year."