The injury bug that has been plaguing the Lakers this year struck again last night. Kobe Bryant injured his ankle closing out the game in Atlanta on Wednesday night, when Dahntay Jones played some questionable defense on the Mamba. Kobe came down awkwardly from a fadeaway jumper, and immediately fell to the ground, visibly in pain.
X-Rays taken immediately following the game were negative, but Kobe’s ankle is listed as “severely strained.” The worse news is that the Lakers officially listed the 17 year veteran as “out indefinitely”, which hurts as they Lakers have finally appeared to have figured things out.
---- Kobe Bryant has evolved over the years. Check this wallpaper of the Black Mamba! ----
After the game, Kobe’s wife posted a photo on her Instagram account, showing the severity of Kobe’s ankle sprain (shown above). We don’t know when Kobe will return, but by the look of that picture provided by Vanessa Bryant, it looks like this injury will sideline him for at least a couple of games.
With that said, you never know with Kobe Bryant. Kobe did call the sprain his worst since the 2000 NBA Finals. However, the Lakers at least are getting some good news with the recent report that Pau Gasol will be returning to the court next week. Additionally, he will be starting, replacing Earl Clark in the starting rotation.
Meanwhile for Kobe, the recovery process has already begun. He posted the following tweet this morning:
Compression. Ice. Django. Zero Dark Thirty. This is Forty and 1 hour of sleep. #countonwill #countonhaters. On to the next.
— Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant) March 14, 2013
With the Lakers poised to make the playoffs, I don’t expect Kobe to be sidelined for too long. Recently, Kobe has been named Western Conference Player of the Month and Week (twice), and has been playing amazing ball for his seventeenth year.