During the 104-92 loss to the Indiana Pacers tonight, it was revealed that Kobe Bryant will miss at least three more weeks with pain and swelling in his left knee. Bryant originally suffered the injury on December 17 against the Memphis Grizzlies.
While there were no immediate comments from the five-time champion, Kobe spoke to Los Angeles Times’ Melissa Rohlin after the game about missing more time and the pain he’s dealing with the current injury:
I talked to @kobebryant after the Lakers game. He said he's "disappointed" and "down" about having to miss at least another three weeks.
— Melissa Rohlin (@melissarohlin) January 29, 2014
Here's what Kobe told me about the pain: ""It's like an internal swelling," he said. "It's different…It's deep in there."
— Melissa Rohlin (@melissarohlin) January 29, 2014
While Bryant usually knows how to deal with his injuries, he doesn’t know what to expect and has no idea how this knee fracture is even supposed to feel like:
Kobe on his expectations: "I didn't know what to expect," Bryant said. "…I have no idea what it's supposed to feel like. It's tough."
— Melissa Rohlin (@melissarohlin) January 29, 2014
After working vigorously to return from his Achilles injury, Bryant was only able to return for six games this season. While some believe that he should sit out the rest of the season, Kobe intends on returning regardless of what the Lakers’ record is.
With Bryant set to be re-evaluated in three weeks, he will miss at least seven more Lakers games and will likely be unable to compete in his 16th All-Star appearance.
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