Kobe Bryant plays down leg injury ahead of season opener

Kobe Bryant has claimed that there should be no concerns about his fitness as the Los Angeles Lakers prepare to begin their season on Wednesday night.

The 37-year-old was forced to miss the final three pre-season games due to a leg injury picked up earlier this month, but he will be in the team for the opener against the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Despite watching his teammates prepare for the new campaign without him, Bryant insists that he is fully ready to take to the court at the Staples Center.

"I don't really have any anxiety about it," he told reporters. "It's been slowly getting better. The past couple days, I've been able to move a lot more with some of the things that we feel comfortable doing.

"I've been training pretty hard for a long time now, so a week ain't going to be nothing for me."

James will set an NBA record on Wednesday when he becomes the first player to appear in 20 seasons for one franchise.