While Kobe Bryant was in China, video surfaced of him shooting jump shots and running on the court during the Los Angeles Lakers pre-game warm-ups. The Vine video that the Lakers posted on their Twitter account with the caption, “Big cheers from the crowd for the sprinting Mamba,” gave fans a glimmer of hope that Kobe might be back on the court to start the season. Not so fast. At Lakers practice today, Kobe said he has scaled back since the China trip.
“I was cranking it up the entire time I was there in China. I’ve scaled back since just to let it heal up a little bit more and just to get a little more flexibility to it, but you know it feels good just to run and bring sweat by running.”
Bryant says one of the biggest challenges is not to give into temptation to come back too soon. With all the media hype surrounding not only whether Bryant will come back strong, but whether or not he will come back at all, Bryant is eager to prove the doubters wrong.
“The challenge is right in front of your face. You really have to restrain yourself to not get out there.”
Bryant has yet to participate in a Lakers practice and said he’s restricted himself from doing any one-on-one basketball activities in his own time. He also clarified that his decision to come back will account for more factors than simply feeling 100 percent.
“It’s not about being 100 percent necessarily, but it’s about making sure you’re running with the proper gait and your not putting stress in other areas that can cause other problems down the road.”
When Bryant does return, he said he expects to play like his normal self. When that will be, however, remains to be seen.
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