--Grantland's Rafe Bartholomew explains why NBA stars, such as Kobe Bryant, played last weekend in the Philippines.

--ESPN Los Angeles' Dave McMenamin reports that Turkish Airlines officials will be part of the negotiations when Kobe Bryant meets with the Turkish basketball team Besiktas, scheduled for Saturday.

--ESPN Los Angeles' Brian Kamenetzky sizes up the free-agent centers.

--Lakers.com's Mike Trudell relives Game 5 of the Lakers-Knicks 1972 NBA Finals.

Tweet of the Day: "Derek Fisher will speak to media Fri but ?'s on anything other than camp will be kept to minimum. Is there anything else to talk about?" -- janiscarr (Orange County Register Lakers reporter Janis Carr)

Rick Friedman Reader Comment of the Day: "I hope we have one at all, but it always pleases me to see a professional work at his game if he thinks there's room for improvement. I think playing in a more traditional PG role will help as well, but a good year from Blake will be key. Good Luck." -- Graham Thordarson.

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Kobe Bryant playing in Turkey? "A 50% chance," says Besiktas exec

NBA lockout: How will work stoppage affect Kobe Bryant's scoring?

-- Mark Medina

E-mail the Lakers blog at mgmedin@gmail.com

Photo: Kobe Bryant arrives at a stadium in China on July 16. Credit: Joe Tan / Reuters