MIAMI -- Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant sat out Tuesday's game against the Miami Heat to rest, the team said.
It marked the first game of the season that the 37-year-old Bryant has missed in what could be his final NBA campaign.
Metta World Peace, 35, started in place of Bryant.
Bryant is in the final year of his deal with the team and hasn't said whether he'll retire next summer, instead saying he'll make that decision at the end of this season, his 20th in the NBA.