Ciao, Kobe!

Los Angeles Laker superstar Kobe Bryant will play ball in Italy during the NBA lockout, RadarOnline.com is reporting.

Italian club Virtus Bologna announced Friday that it has reached a verbal agreement with Bryant, 33, for him to play about ten games in Italy during the lockout.

"We have reached an economic deal," Virtus president Claudio Sabatini told a local radio station. "There's still some things to arrange but at this point I'm very optimistic. I would say it's 95 percent done."

We can finally ask the question with confidence: "Are you ready for some football?"

NFL owners and players on Monday agreed to a pact that will end the league lockout, an insider told the AP.

The players were expected to vote for the deal late Monday, the insider said, adding both sides had spent the weekend ironing out the details of the agreement.