LOS ANGELES -- Nearly eight months after Kobe Bryant limped off the Lakers home court with a torn Achilles tendon and a career in doubt, he struggled to keep his composure when he finally stepped back onto the same hardwood. And though his comeback night didnt quite go to script, Bryant couldnt help reflecting on the work necessary to get back on that court -- and all the months of steady labour ahead to reclaim his game. Bryant had nine points and eight rebounds in his season debut, but Amir Johnson scored a career-high 32 points in the trade-depleted Toronto Raptors 106-94 victory over Los Angeles on Sunday night. Bryant began his 18th NBA season by going 2 for 9 with four assists and eight turnovers in 28 minutes. The fourth-leading scorer in NBA history got hurt April 12 and persevered through several months of rehabilitation to return for Los Angeles 20th game of the new season, only to struggle with his shot, his timing and his new teammates. "My rhythm is completely out of sync," Bryant said. "But this is a start, and I guess a start is good." Nick Young scored 19 points for the Lakers, who went 10-9 without Bryant this season, forging a winning record without the five-time NBA champion and with little help from fellow injured MVP Steve Nash. Adoring fans cheered Kobes every move and forgave every misstep, but Bryant couldnt rally the Lakers late despite another huge game by Los Angeles reserves. Bryant was touched by the fans reception and his teammates encouragement, although his ruthless competitive nature chafed against his natural emotions before the opening tip. "You try to control it as much as you can, but you cant help thinking about the hard work," Bryant said. "You try to put it to the side as much as possible and do your work. ... It makes you appreciate the game, this franchise and this city, and all weve been through." The Lakers never led, and Toronto improbably snapped its five-game losing streak despite playing without forward Rudy Gay, who is expected to be traded to Sacramento on Monday as the centerpiece of an apparent seven-player deal. Kyle Lowry had 23 points and eight assists, and DeMar DeRozan added 10 of his 26 points in the final 4:35 of the Raptors first road win over the Lakers in 11 tries since Dec. 28, 2001. "(Bryant) was a little rusty, and you could tell because a lot of his shots were short," said DeRozan, who grew up in Los Angeles watching Kobe. "We were going against him his first game back, but hes going to get it going again and hell be back to the old Kobe." The Raptors had 11 players available after holding out Gay, centre Aaron Gray and forward Quincy Acy, all set to head to the Kings in exchange for Greivis Vasquez, Patrick Patterson, John Salmons and Chuck Hayes. That turned out to be plenty, thanks to two Los Angeles natives. Johnson, who attended nearby Westchester High School, went 14 for 17 and surpassed his previous career high early in the third quarter. Johnson didnt take a shot in the fourth, but USC product DeRozan and Lowry held off the Lakers. "We knew we were down because half our team got traded, so our mindset was just to go out there and play hard and win this game," Johnson said. "It was real emotional. It happened to us last year in Atlanta, too. We talked to those guys, and Rudy was still at the hotel, so we called him in and told him how much we all appreciated what they did for this team and the city." The building had the buzz of a playoff game before the opening tip, with thousands of fans training cameras on Bryant during opening warmups. The building erupted in loud applause at every mention of Kobe, who was introduced last in the starting lineup to the thunderous strains of "The Imperial March" -- Darth Vaders theme from "Star Wars." The crowd roared again the first time Bryant touched the ball, and he found Robert Sacre underneath the hoop for an assist on Los Angeles first possession. With his wife, Vanessa, and two daughters sitting courtside, Bryant hit a free throw for his first point in the second quarter, followed shortly by an 8-foot, double-pump, left-handed bank shot for his first field goal. Bryant added a signature 22-foot face-up jumper later in the period, but also showed clear signs of rust and unfamiliarity with his new teammates. "Were going to have to carry Kobe a little bit, because of course hes not 100 per cent, not in game shape," said Xavier Henry, who scored 17 points. "Its going to be fun. Its a long year, and hes just getting back." NOTES: The officials allowed Toronto C Jonas Valanciunas to make two free throws out of a timeout late in the first quarter, but belatedly realized Lowry was supposed to take the shots. They wiped the two points off the board and put Lowry back at the line, where he made both shots anyway. ... Terrence Ross banked in a shot from beyond half-court at the first-quarter buzzer to put Toronto up 30-20. Julian Edelman Jersey . And, just for good measure, lets say the lottery team finishes the game short-handed because two starters come down with the very same injury. Custom New England Patriots Jerseys . In the days leading up to the draft, TSN.ca and TSN Radio basketball analyst Duane Watson looks at some of the names that will be headlining the event. Watch the 2014 NBA Draft on TSN, Thursday at 7pm et/4pm pt. http://www.patriotsjerseysauthentic.com/...-Bowl-Jersey/.Y. - Brooklyn Nets centre Brook Lopez has a strained lower back and will miss at least a week. Steve Grogan Jersey . -- Canada played to expectation up until halftime. Tedy Bruschi Womens Jersey . Fans holding laudatory signs started showing up at Yankee Stadium when the gates opened at 4 p.m. Monday, an hour early in order to give them a chance to watch the New York captain take batting practice.PETERBOROUGH, Ont. -- Steven Lorentz snapped a 2-2 tie in the third period to lead the Peterborough Petes to a 5-2 win over the Oshawa Generals on Thursday in Ontario Hockey League. Peterborough (27-28-5) had a 2-0 lead in the second period before the Generals (39-17-5) tied the game with a pair of power-play goals from Hunter Smith. Greg Betzold opened the scoring for Peterborough in the first period, and Nelson Armstrong made it 2-0 with a power play goal in the second. Anthony Stefano added to the lead in the third period and Nick Ritchie added an empty netter. Andrew DAgostini made 25 saves for Peterborough, and Daniel Altshuller stopped 28 shots for Oshawa. --- STEELHEADS 3 ICEDOGS 1 ST CATHARINES, Ont. -- Bryson Cianfrone and Josh Burnside both scored and had an assist in the third period as Mississauga downed Niagara. Defenceman Jared Walsh had a power-play goal in the first period for the Steelheads (23-33-4), while Spencer Martin made 31 saves for the win. Jordan Maaletta was the lone scorer for the IceDogs (19-33-8) and Brent Moran stopped 25 shots.dddddddddddd --- STORM 5 BATTALION 3 NORTH BAY, Ont. -- Zack Mitchells goal at 12:53 of the third period was the eventual winner as Guelph held off a late charge by the Battalion. Stephen Pierog, Robby Fabbri, Jason Dickinson and Kerby Rychel rounded out the scoring for the Storm (46-10-3). Matthew Mancina made 34 saves. Barclay Goodrow and Connor Jarvis both scored in the last six minutes to bring North Bay (32-22-6) to within a goal. Vincent Praplan and Miles Liberati also scored for the Battalion, while Brendan ONeill turned aside 23 shots. --- SPITFIRES 4 COLTS 1 WINDSOR, Ont. -- Sam Povorozniouk and Ryan Foss both had power-play goals as the Spitfires flew past Barrie. Remy Giftopoulos and Ben Johnson also scored for Windsor (36-22-3), while Dalen Kuchmey made 27 saves for the win. Kevin Labanc had the only goal for the Colts (31-26-3) and Daniel Gibl stopped 14 shots. ' ' '