Italian Team Confident Kobe Bryant Will Play with Team

The president of the Italian basketball club, Virtus Bologna, is confident that Los Angeles Lakers' star Kobe Bryant will sign with the team despite conflicting problems in the schedule. President, Claudio Sabatini, said Bryant's agent has agreed for Kobe to be with the team for 35-40 days and play ten games for the squad for $3 million.

"We're very confident the deal can be completed," Sabatini said. "We're prepared to make a big investment."

The club says they are ready to provide Bryant the money needed.

"Kobe and his agent have been very professional throughout the dealings and it's been a pleasure to work with them," Sabatini said. "I have a huge amount of respect for Kobe not just as a player, but also as a person."

Bryant told ESPN's Ric Bucher that him playing for the club will benefit all the 17 teams in the Series A division and not just the Virtus Bologna club alone.

It's not very surprising seeing Bryant playing in Italy as he lived in the country for seven years thanks to his dad, a former NBA power forward.

It's going to be exciting seeing Kobe play and it's going to be big for Italy basketball.