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Bryant out for nine months after shoulder surgery

Jan 21, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (24) against the New Orleans Pelicans during the first quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Kobe Bryant's NBA season effectively ended on Wednesday after he had surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder that will sideline him for nine months, the Los Angeles Lakers said. The five-time National Basketball Association champion, who injured his shoulder last week in a loss to the Pelicans in New Orleans, underwent a procedure lasting two hours, the team said in a statement. (Reporting by Mark Lamport-Stokes in Scottsdale, Arizona; Editing by Gene Cherry)