Report: Kobe coming back for 2015-16 season

Not that there was any doubt, but Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant has no intentions of walking away from the game. 

Bryant, who's set to undergo surgery Wednesday to repair a torn rotator cuff in his right shoulder and miss the rest of the Lakers' miserable campaign, will return for the 2015-16 season and play out the remainder of his contract, according to Mike Bresnahan of the The Los Angeles Times. 

The five-time champion, who doesn't want an injury to force him out of basketball, has one year and $25 million left on his contract. Besides the money, it would be shocking if the uber-competitive Bryant let an injury spell the end of his Hall of Fame career despite recent whispers that he had contemplated retiring at the conclusion of the season. 

Bresnahan also notes that Bryant intends to be active in the free-agent recruiting process this offseason in an attempt to lure players to join him for what will potentially be his final act. 

The Lakers should have enough money to afford one max player this offseason without going over the cap, will return 2014 No. 7 overall pick Julius Randle, and could potentially have a high draft pick. The Lakers, who have the fourth-worst record in the NBA, owe a first-round pick to the Phoenix Suns, but it's top-five protected in 2015. 

With the right moves, the Lakers could claw their way back to respectability while Bryant, third all-time in scoring, caps off his illustrious career. 

Bryant averaged 22.3 points, 5.6 assists and 5.7 rebounds in 35 games, while shooting a career-worst 37.3 percent from the field.