NBA notes: Ankle injury forces Bryant to miss another game

Kobe Bryant missed a second consecutive game because of a sore left ankle.

Coach Phil Jackson said before Monday's game against the San Antonio Spurs that Bryant and center Andrew Bynum would sit out.

Bryant, who had played in 235 straight games, missed Saturday night's win at Portland. He originally sprained his ankle on Jan. 29 in Philadelphia. He aggravated it last week against Charlotte when teammate Lamar Odom stepped on his foot.

Bryant last played Friday night in the Lakers' 126-113 loss to the Denver Nuggets. He had 33 points and nine rebounds.

Already this season he's been playing through a fracture of his right index finger.

Bynum didn't play in the second half against Portland because of a bruised right hip.

FOSTER OUT FOR SEASON: Indiana Pacers center Jeff Foster will miss the rest of the season with a back injury.

The Pacers announced Monday that Foster will have surgery after the All-Star break. He is expected to be ready for training camp in the fall.

The 6-foot-11 Foster has played in 16 games this season and averaged 3.1 points and 5.1 rebounds per game. The 10-year veteran is fourth in Pacers' history in games played with 697.

The Pacers also are without rookie forward Tyler Hansbrough, who has been out since Jan. 16 with an inner ear infection and isn't even allowed to work out.

WIZARDS TO PLAY BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK: The snowed-out game between the Atlanta Hawks and Washington Wizards has been rescheduled for March 11.

The game was supposed to be played Saturday but was postponed because of a blizzard that dumped 2 feet of snow on the nation's capital. Both teams played in other cities Friday night, and the storm prevented them from traveling to the area.

The new schedule will force the Wizards to play three games in three nights. They visit the Pistons on March 12 and host the Magic on March 13.

NO MAJOR TRADE FOR 'WOLVES: Minnesota Timberwolves boss David Kahn says he won't trade any of the team's core players this month.

Kahn was adamant on Monday that dealing Al Jefferson, Kevin Love, Jonny Flynn or Corey Brewer before the deadline would be a mistake. He says the Wolves could make what he terms a minor move before the Feb. 18 deadline, but that's all.

Kahn also insisted that the Wolves have not initiated any trade talks involving Jefferson, their leading scorer.

The Wolves have won four straight games, a season high, but still have the league's second-worst record at 13-38. Kahn says he sees the team two years away from making the playoffs.