Kobe Bryant: MRI Reveals Torn Ligament for Lakers Star

Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant hasn't had the smoothest offseason.

The Lakers failed to trade for Chris Paul, they curiously traded away reigning Sixth Man of the Year Lamar Odom, Dwight Howard's chances of landing with the team are still iffy and Bryant and longtime wife Vanessa are set to divorce.

Things got worse for Bryant on Wednesday when he underwent an MRI and Dr. Steven Shin detected a torn lunotriquetral ligament, according to the Lakers' Twitter page.

Now, headed into the Lakers' opening-day game against the Chicago Bulls on Christmas, Bryant is being listed as "day-to-day."

Bryant averaged 25.3 points, 5.1 rebounds and 4.7 assists last season, making his 13th career All-Star game in the process.

However, despite going 57-25, winning the Pacific Division and grabbing the No. 2 seed in the Western Conference, the Lakers' season was largely seen as a disappointment after getting swept by the eventual champion Dallas Mavericks in Western Conference Semifinals.

In the series, the Lakers' aging defense was exposed, center Andrew Bynum got ejected for clotheslining Mavericks point guard J.J. Barea and All-Star forward Pau Gasol ended a nightmare of a postseason.

In that regard, the Lakers were expected to make big changes this season, including possibly trading away Bynum and/or Gasol for someone like Paul or Howard.

Instead, they appear to have gotten worse.

The last thing the Lakers needed was any health concerns associated with Bryant.

This could be a rough season for the Lakers, especially after in-city rival the Los Angeles Clippers landed Paul.