Reading List: Kobe Bryant returns (with highlights)

Kobe Bryant made his return on Sunday night, roughly eight months after tearing his Achilles tendon.

In 28 minutes, Bryant scored nine points with eight rebounds, four assists and a pair of steals, along with eight turnovers. The Lakers lost, 106-94 to the Toronto Raptors, and Bryant looked understandably rusty.

Here's a morning shootaround of Kobe takes from around the internet:

First, we start with Bryant himself, with quotes relayed from Dave McMenamin of ESPN Los Angeles:

"I'm just insanely critical," Bryant said after finishing with nine points, eight rebounds, four assists, two steals and eight turnovers in 28 minutes. "There was a bunch of things that I completely messed up on."

When asked to grade his performance, Bryant gave himself an "F." And when asked if he had been "reborn in a new form," he quipped, "Right now my form is a horses--- form." Bryant was particularly down on himself for being responsible for such a hefty portion of the Lakers' 19 turnovers which led to 22 points for Toronto.

"I failed miserably at that," Bryant said after revealing his personal expectation for his debut was to avoid turnovers. "That was really the biggest thing for me, just trying to take care of the basketball because I know I'm going to be in charge of making some decisions out there … Basketball wise, I'm not happy."

Ramona Shelburne of ESPN vividly describes Bryant's emotion before the return:

The emotion, the fear, the hard work, the gratitude, the appreciation for the game that many thought he might never be able to play again.

His lip quivered. He had to steel his jaw to trap the emotion from spilling out.

"You try to control it as much as you can," Bryant said. "But you can't help but think of all the support and the hard work. I really, really worked my butt off this entire summer to try to get to this place.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports gets inside Bryant's head further, with the Lakers superstar admitting vulnerability:

Eight months after tearing his Achilles tendon and fearing that he could be done forever, Bryant was a lost soul between his yesterday and today, between catharsis and comeback.

"As tough as ever to find that balance of where my mind needed to be," Bryant told Yahoo Sports later outside the locker room. "As soon as the injury happened, I had doubts whether this night would ever happen. And then, I kicked it into the full gear and fought myself to not think about the end result – just think about every single day of work it would take for me to get back again."

Bryant hadn't returned expecting to be his old self on Sunday, and he was far, far from it. He tried so hard to fit himself back into the burgeoning chemistry of his new teammates, determined to be a playmaker, a passer, and yet still lacking the timing and rhythm to spare himself a glut of turnovers.

Kurt Helin of Pro Basketball Talk highlights the adjustment that Bryant and the Lakers are in for, at least for a bit:

The other Lakers players (particularly the starters) were simply hesitant and guys were passive when Kobe was on the court. It wasn’t so much guys were just watching him (as has been an issue in the past) as much as just the movements in the offense were out of sync.

“We’re all trying to get used to playing with one another,” Lakers starting center Robert Sacre said. “It’s definitely been growing pains. I think we can handle it, nothing we haven’t seen before…

“I think it’s going to take a couple of games and unfortunately it’s not some easy games we’ve got coming down the pipe.”

Amin Elhassan of ESPN expands on the somewhat new fit of Bryant and his teammates:

It was painfully obvious that Bryant was extremely tentative on the floor, partially because it looked like he was moving at a measured pace, but also because he made almost too conscientious an effort to "fit in" with his teammates and not disrupt the early-season chemistry they've developed in his absence. His reluctance to shoot and over-willingness to pass made for some nice assists early, but eventually the Raptors figured it out and played him for the pass, resulting in a rash of turnovers. He didn't make matters any easier by trying to force passes in impossibly tight seams.

It was also apparent that his presence on the court frazzled the nerves of his teammates, as the team offense looked disjointed whenever he was in the lineup. 

Darius Soriano of Forum Blue and Gold highlights some positives:

Kobe did flash some very good playmaking on the night and showed that he hasn’t lost his feel for the game at all. While he only tallied 4 assists, he made several very good reads and was pretty decisive in where he wanted to go with the ball on any given possession. The ball rarely stuck in his hands for more than a few beats and when operating in the P&R he was mostly solid in stringing out his dribble and reading the play in front of him. Again, he got in trouble when he got sloppy with his delivery on some passes, but for the most part I was pleased with how he surveyed the floor and in his initial read of a play.

On a lighter note, and one that perhaps explains Bryant being introduced to The Imperial March, Bryant revealed he watched Star Wars the night before the game, per Sam Amick of USA Today Sports:

But it also included a family viewing ofStar Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi, the third installment of the original trilogy and, fittingly enough, Bryant's personal favorite.

As Bryant revealed in a postgame news conference that was an entertaining reminder of why he's one of the most fascinating figures in all of professional sports — one in which he gave himself an F for his nine-point, eight-turnover performance in his Los Angeles Lakers' 106-94 loss to the Toronto Raptorsbut offered so much thoughtful insight as to why he's so optimistic about what lies ahead — he recently showed all six Stars Wars movies to one of his two daughters.

"I had my kid watch every single Stars Wars,Episodes IV, V and VI, and then start I, II," Bryant said. "We literally just finished it last night."

And finally, the NBA's YouTube channel provides is with a two-minute highlight reel of Bryant's debut: