By Tara Sadat-Tehrani
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| Mark J. Terrill / AP |
The moment Kobe Bryant fell to the ground against the Golden
State Warriors on March 13, 2013, fans knew that Los Angeles had to be ready
for a new team without their star. As he
slowly got up and hit two free throws, Kobe Bryant went straight to the locker
room hoping to return to the game.
Unfortunately, Kobe was advised to get surgery for his ruptured Achilles
and would have to be out the rest of the season and part of this season. As we all know, Bryant does not enjoy sitting
out of games. He played with a torn
ligament in his wrist most of 2012 and still averaged twenty-seven points. Now, the real question is, when will Kobe
return this season? Will he prove to all
NBA fans once again that he can come back before most players or will he play
it safe and come back when it’s most appropriate?
The earliest Kobe Bryant should be returning to games is
October, but the latest would be in January.
Knowing Bryant, he wants to come back as soon as he can to help his team
succeed and so far he believes that he is “feeling good” although there is no
time table for his return.
Judging from his
social media updates, Kobe wants us fans to believe that he will be coming back
by the first game of the season. He has
posted videos on Instagram of him running on an altered gravity treadmill
teasing the NBA audience that his improvement is way ahead of schedule. Now, NBA analysts on Twitter are even backing
up Bryant saying that he will be coming back at an impossible time for anyone
who has ruptured their Achilles.
Mike D’Antoni and the rest of the coaching staff are
probably cringing with all the news surrounding Kobe’s injury and probably hope
that this isn’t pressuring the super star to come back by the season opener
versus their city rivals the Los Angeles Clippers. With the buzz around the
league, Kobe wants to prove everyone wrong.
But what’s new? He knows that he
can play through anything and show every other athlete that they should do the
same.
Bryant’s super man habits have even changed us as fans to
believe that any injury is something small, and getting back up from a rolled
ankle is not a big deal. Let us NBA fans
cross our fingers that Kobe Bryant’s unlikely timetable will be one more
realistic than others. His skills are something every NBA fan,
whether they dislike him or not, are ones to look forward to, but if he wants
to play the superman role and comes back a little too soon, his NBA days will
be delayed or maybe even over.
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