Do you blame D'Antoni for Kobe's injury?

[Sedale Threatt]

I don't think any coach could have developed an identity with this team. We just weren't healthy enough.

[DEEP3CL]

If it wasn't for d'antoni the Lakers wouldn't be fighting for the 8th seed. If they weren't fighting for the 8th seed then Kobe wouldn't be forcing himself to play so many minutes.


Its MDA fault anyway I look at it.

How is that D'Antoni's fault that they were 1-4 before he came in and couldn't win a game in the preseason?

The Lakers were bad before he was the coach and yet it's all his fault? The players, injuries and GM share the blame. It's not all on D'Antoni and it's obvious.

The Lakers were 5-5 when D'Antoni.

No....1-4 at the time MDA got hired, 5-5 by the time MDA took the bench. Bickerstaff coached for 5 games going 4-1.

[gotokyo]

^I'm confused as to who your talking to?


Lakers WERE 5-5 when D'Antoni coached his first Lakers game.

He was technically hired when they were 3-4 but he wasn't coaching those games right away.

[leolozon]

^I'm confused as to who your talking to?


Lakers WERE 5-5 when D'Antoni coached his first Lakers game.

He was technically hired when they were 3-4 but he wasn't coaching those games right away.

1-4 under Mike Brown, it was my mistake.

[HurricaneKid]

I played half court with a guy in great shape and 30 min in he tore his Achilles. Sure Kobe has been worn into the ground but when the Drs all say the same thing "Its not the minutes", you gotta let the professionals be. Achilles injuries are freak accidents and extra minutes aren't going to cause them.

[MelosSoreWrist]

Any professional thoughts on whether the prior injuries could have factored into the injury?

[kobe808lak]

The Achilles Tendon injury can definitely be the result of overuse and too much strain on the foot...so in other words, too many minutes and not enough rest.

How can you not point to the insane amount of minutes he has been playing and not directly correlate that to the injury? Add in the fact that he got banged up during that very game and was probably over compensating on that leg + his ankle sprain a few weeks ago...

I would have rather of missed the playoffs this year and had a healthy Kobe for 2014. This sucks. We know Kobe is a warrior but this is a really bad injury for a high-level athlete.

[chefy]

"You can tore your Achilles while doing regular/normal stuff etc." ha!


Last thing this team needs right now is another drama. Not surprised by the FO's reactions in regards to this matter.


I don't blame D'antoni, he had no choice, and Kobe's gonna be Kobe. But to say the heavy minutes didn't place Kobe (35) in a great risk of getting an injury minor or major is stupid. But yea what's done is done, no need to point fingers. It's time to focus on the playoffs and lets hope this the last injury this team will have this season.

[peteyjones13]

Raps fan here,

I totally blame D'Antoni...I'm probably a bit biased because I think he's a terrible coach.
Watching Kobe the last bunch of games, there were so many times he was clearly exhausted, trying to catch his breath, which you wouldn't expect from Kobe.
And I hate the argument, Kobe forced it. There's audio of D'Antoni on the bench in other games where he says Kobe will play all 48.
It's idiotic and non sensical not to give a few minutes rest. He can easily get some rest end of 1st/beginning of 2nd, and end of 3rd/beginning of 4th. He can play 38-40 instead of 48.
And it's almost offensive to the rest of your team saying that Kobe HAS to play 48. First of all, he doesn't have to, and he'll be better rested if he DOESN'T play 48. Secondly, you guys have enough depth (Yes I know your bench is weak) to not require Kobe to play 48.

D'Antoni ran Amare into the ground, ran Kobe into the ground, and is just a generally very BAD basketball coach...should've hired Phil.

[Edrees]

How did other athletes who got this injury get it? Why not look at history to see what causes this injury? Surprise other examples haven't been brought up yet

[madtrap347]

it is beyond me that there is even an argument that an injury to a tendon has no correlation to aging and muscle over-use. Unless a doctor (MD or PHD) that specializes in tendon injuries says otherwise, then I will not listen to anyone else, especially "basketball experts". I am no expert either but I do work in health care and as far as i have read (below), tendon rupture is a result from physical exertion and muscle fatigue. Now, common sense should ensue anyways. We all know older age decreases the strength of your muscle, tendon, bones, etc.. so when a 34 year old plays an entire game and exerts 110% effort in every single step (which puts pressure on the achilles), he then puts himself at risk for injuries, including tendon rupture.

" Aging and vascular disease decrease collagen density, break collagen cross-links, and reduce the elasticity of the tendon sheath and tendon itself. Rupture occurs when a sudden shear stress (eg, cutting during a basketball game) is applied to an already weakened or degenerative tendon"

Holmes GB, Lin J. Etiologic factors associated with symptomatic achilles tendinopathy. Foot Ankle Int. 2006;27(11):952.

"Age, male gender, and obesity are risk factors for Achilles tendon problems. The peak age for rupture is 30 to 40 years for both men and women; this may be when degenerative changes and occasional high stress from sports coincide. Rupture is four to five times more common in men than women "

Józsa L, Kvist M, Bálint BJ, Reffy A, Järvinen M, Lehto M, Barzo M. The role of recreational sport activity in Achilles tendon rupture. A clinical, pathoanatomical, and sociological study of 292 cases. Am J Sports Med. 1989;17(3):338.

[Wonderllama]

I don't blame D'Antoni for what happened to Kobe, but this seems like a good excuse to get rid of him. He's a bad fit for the Lakers.