On Wednesday, Kobe Bryant aggravated a shoulder injury that has been bothering him for quite some time and an MRI revealed a torn rotator cuff today. With Kobe flying back to Los Angeles and out indefinitely, there is ‘concern’ within the Los Angeles Lakers organization that this could be another season-ending injury according to Ken Berger of CBS Sports:
On Kobe Bryant, there's "concern" within Lakers this could be season-ending, source says. But nothing definitive until docs examine him.
— Ken Berger (@KBergCBS) January 22, 2015
While doctors will need to examine Kobe’s shoulder first, this could potentially be his third consecutive season-ending injury. After a ruptured Achilles in 2012 and a broken knee last season, this would be another setback for the five-time champion at this stage of his career. If it is indeed a full tear, it would require surgery and approximately four-six months to heal.
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Battling back from two major injuries, Kobe has appeared in 35 games this season and has been sitting out numerous games recently after playing major minutes. Despite the poor shooting percentages in his 19th season, Kobe is averaging 22.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 5.6 assists in 34.5 minutes.
With another season potentially coming to an end due to injury, it will be interesting to see what Kobe decides to do moving forward. The five-time champion recently admitted that retirement has crossed his mind this season, but still has one-year remaining on his contract worth $25 million.
[divide]Lakers Kobe Bryant Discusses Future Possibility Of Being Shutdown