Kobe recants Vanessa trade demands

We recently told you about an Internet rumor that Lakers star Kobe Bryant and his wife Vanessa Laine Bryant may be parting ways. The rumors started when a local Los Angeles based network affiliate posted the story on its Web site and later pulled it without explanation.

Apparently the rumors became so prevalent that Kobe felt it necessary to address it publicly. Kobe told Entertainment Tonight’s Kevin Fraser, exclusively we might add, that there is no way he and Vanessa are getting a divorce anytime soon.

We generally take “no comments” and “denials” with a grain of salt. But, our gut feeling is that Kobe’s denial is pretty genuine and the divorce talk was probably started by some freckle-faced kid sitting in his (or her) mom’s basement with a mouse and keyboard.