I'm going to be out of commission for blogging Sunday as I spend time in Washington, D.C., with family and friends and visit Nationals Park to see Stephen Strasburg pitch against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
So what does this exactly have to do with the Lakers blog? Well, this will be the only post of the day, and I thought this could serve as a springboard to another topic. Strasburg created lots of buzz at San Diego State and continued to do so as he quickly moved up in the Nationals minor league system and then, in a Nationals uniform, proved the hype justified.
That leads me to this question: What were your initial thoughts when you first heard about Kobe Bryant? Where were you when you first saw him play? And what were your expectations on how everything would turn out?
This should spark a range of responses and keep us occupied for the day.
-- Mark Medina
Follow the L.A. Times Lakers blog on Twitter: twitter.com/latmedina. E-mail the Lakers blog at mgmedin@gmail.com