Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant will return to the basketball court Sunday in the game against the Toronto Raptors on Dec. 8, 2013, he announced Friday afternoon on his Facebook page.
Bryant has spent the last eight months rehabilitating a torn left Achilles tendon April 12. The 2007-08 NBA MVP and 15-time NBA All-Star has returned to practice with the Lakers in recent weeks and has been medically cleared for all basketball activities.
The 18-year veteran posted a dramatic video of Lakers introducing his return.
"It feels pretty good," Bryant said, according to ESPN Los Angeles. "This is the second day now that I've been able to get out there and move around and play and play pretty well, and it felt like I could do anything that I wanted to do out there on the floor."
Bryant, 35, was an All-NBA first-teamer last season, averaging 27.3 points, 6.0 assists and 5.6 rebounds a game. Without him, the Lakers have started the season 9-9 while losing point guards Steven Nash and Jordan Farmar to injuries.
The Lakers will be playing Friday night against the Sacramento Kings. While Paul Gasol have led the team with 14.3 points and 9.9 rebounds a game and they've managed to win nine but lose nine games, they are out of the playoff picture for this year.
In November, Bryant signed a two-year extension with the Lakers worth $48.5 million, which will continue to make him the highest-paid NBA player. He will become a free agent this summer.
Sunday's match against the Raptors will begin at 9:30 p.m. ET at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on NBA TV.
