NBA’s Bryant out for season after surgery (AFP)

Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant had successful shoulder surgery, the third-straight year he has undergone a season-ending procedure, the National Basketball Association team said. The two-hour surgery, to repair a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder, was performed by doctors Neal ElAttrache and Steve Lombardo at the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic in Los Angeles. The 36-year-old Bryant is expected to be out nine months and doctors said with proper rehabilitation he would be able to return to the Lakers in time for his 20th season.