While Kobe Bryant was able to take a seat courtside to cheer his Lakers teammates on Sunday against the Charlotte Bobcats, the news wasn't quite as good for Lakers head coach Rudy Tomjanovich, who was forced to miss the game with a stomach virus.

The Lakers won the game 101-90.

"Having Kobe over there was definitely a plus," forward Lamar Odom said. "We needed to win, by any means. It was our longest losing streak of the year, so of course it felt good. Chris Mihm played really well tonight, and we needed a game like that from him. He was all over the boards, blocking shots -- he was everywhere."

Frank Hamblen, the only holdover from former coach Phil Jackson's staff, guided the team in Tomjanovich's absence.

"I'm used to seeing Rudy jumping around and being vocal out there, so it was it was strange not seeing him," Mihm said. "But Frank did a great job. He commanded a presence. He kept guys under control, made subs when he needed to and made sure we didn't panic out there."

The Lakers have stated that Kobe Bryant is expected to miss as many as nine more games because of a severely sprained right ankle.

Bryant, who was injured Jan. 13, already has sat out six games and could miss four home games and a five-game road trip that begins Feb. 6, Lakers spokesman John Black told the Los Angeles Times for Friday's edition.

"As of today, it's unlikely that he'll play on the trip," Black told the paper. "We maintain hope that he'll be back soon. He's a fast healer compared to most people, but that was a severe sprain."

According to Kobe Bryant?s attorneys, the woman accusing the Lakers? star of rape reached a money settlement with the owners of The Globe and other tabloids that printed her picture and stories about her hotel encounter with Bryant.

The woman has denied the claim, saying Bryant is trying to shift responsibility away from himself.

L. Lin Wood, an attorney representing the woman, did not immediately return after-hours phone messages Thursday. Calls to tabloid publisher American Media Inc., based in Boca Raton, Fla., went unanswered Thursday evening.

It now seems that Kobe Bryant may not be back with the Los Angeles Lakers until after the All-Star break, on Feb 22.

Bryant is not expected to return to action until the Lakers' Feb. 6-13, five-game trip, probably toward the latter part of that trip.

"At the earliest," Lakers spokesman John Black said Tuesday.

With both attorneys bickering over the rules for witness interviews and whether the NBA star will be able to blame the emotional distress of his accuser on others, the accuser and accused are gearing up for the Feb 2nd hearing.  

One major issue is the distress caused by the highly public criminal trial in which the defendant eventually dropped out due to instances of her name being leaked to the press among other things.

"It certainly would be a downside to having a settlement, not having the ability to tell what happened (testifying at trial)," Clune said. "At the same time, I think this has been such a tremendous ordeal that the concept of getting on with your life can be attractive."

At least one question has been resolved. The woman's other attorney, L. Lin Wood, has dropped the idea of filing a parallel lawsuit in California state court, where there is no limit on damages. In Colorado, liability limits make it difficult for a plaintiff to collect more than $733,000.

Karl Malone will decide on his future in the next week or two and is moving closer to retirement, his agent, Dwight Manley, said Monday.

According to Mike Bresnahan of the L.A. Times Malone, the second-leading scorer in NBA history, might come back to play for the San Antonio Spurs, although he doesn't appear to be leaning that way.

"Probably toward retirement, just because that's what he is right now, theoretically," Manley said. "Things usually go the direction of where you're at."

Malone will not play for the Lakers, although he has been offered a front-office job by owner Jerry Buss if he chooses to retire.

Devean George is close to coming back from off-season surgery on his left ankle, a return delayed more than two months because of complications in his left leg.

Initially, George was expected back in mid-November, but the muscles in his upper left leg atrophied because of lack of use while the ankle was immobilized for a month in a walking boot. He also developed tendinitis in his left knee as a result of the immobilization.

"Mentally it's rough," George said. "Setbacks and trying to do things that you can't do, the whole trial-and-error thing. You're feeling good and then try to do something, you're like 'I used to be able to do this' and then you try it and you can't do it."

A CT scan confirmed there was no fracture on the right foot of Kobe Bryant.

``Kobe will be re-evaluated in approximately one week,'' Black said. ``He has made improvement. He still can't put weight on his right foot.''

Black said there was no target date for Bryant's return.

``We're just saying a minimum of two weeks,'' Black said. ``We'll have a better idea next week.''

If Bryant returns in two weeks, he'll miss a minimum of six more games and eight overall.

Kobe Bryant will miss at least five games with a severely sprained right ankle, but the Los Angeles Lakers said Friday they won't know exactly how long he'll be out for another 72 hours.

Lakers coach Rudy Tomjanovich said Bryant, hurt in the first quarter of Thursday night's game against Cleveland, would be placed on the injured list and replaced on the roster by rookie guard Tony Bobbitt before Saturday night's game at Golden State.

An MRI exam Friday confirmed Bryant has a severely sprained ankle. The Lakers said he'll be re-evaluated Monday and an estimate on how long he'll be sidelined will be given at that time.

Lakers star Kobe Bryant sustained what the team called a severely sprained right ankle midway through the first quarter of Thursday night's game against the Cleveland Cavaliers and had to be helped off the court.

X-rays were negative, but Bryant will have an MRI on Friday, team spokesman John Black said.

Bryant was injured when he landed on Ira Newble's right foot while going for a rebound under the Cavaliers' basket. Newble was called for a foul on the play.