USA - Bryant takes in soccer training in Barcelona

BARCELONA (NBA) - Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant has put questions about his future with the team to one side to visit Spain and take in a training session with soccer giants Barcelona.

Bryant's future with the Lakers appears uncertain after he said he wanted to be traded in an interview with ESPN Radio on May 30.He later changed his mind, but reports this week suggest the Lakers may deal him anyway.

But none of that appeared to be weighing on Bryant as he watched the Barca players go through their routines ahead of Sunday's crucial end-of-season clash at Gimnastic Tarragona. Barca must win and hope Real Madrid slip up at home against Mallorca if they are to clinch a third consecutive Primera Liga title.

"I'm here to enjoy my favourite football team," said Bryant on Barca's official website."It's a privilege to be able to be present at a Barca training session."

Bryant is in Spain on vacation following the advice of Lakers team-mate Shammond Williams, who played for Winterthur FC Barcelona - Barca's basketball team - prior to signing with the Lakers last summer.

Just prior to Sunday evening's battle on the soccer pitch, Barca and Madrid will contest their rivalry on the basketball court as Williams' former team-mates face Real in Game One of the ACB play-off finals in the afternoon.

Bryant became a soccer fan - supporting AC Milan - when growing up in Italy, where his father Joe Bryant played basketball for Rieti, Reggio Calabria, Pistoria and Reggio Emilia during the 1980s and early 1990s.

FIBA