Kobe Bryant out for the season with torn rotator cuff

[Slava]

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[leeprettyp]

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He and Magic Johnson BOTH will always be my favorite players EVER. But its just time ya'll and its not him mentally but his body cant hold up any longer. But for a WING player what this guys accomplished and the joy he's brought to my favorite team EVER is 2nd to none. You have NOTHING LEFT to prove to the haters Kobe. You will always be in my eyes one of the 5 GREATEST PLAYERS to EVER PICK UP A BASKETBALL EVER. He needs to seriously consider retirement, thats the same injury he had operated on in the past

[TyCobb]

Damn, will he want to rehab it once again to NBA standards? I'm not so sure.

[leeprettyp]

Damn, will he want to rehab it once again to NBA standards? I'm not so sure.

I feel this is a sign telling him he cant do it anymore. He needs to just accept it no matter how hard it is. He has nothing left to prove IMO

[Kilroy]

No reason for him to come back this season at least, and if he was really thinking of retiring after next season anyway, why come back at all?
I guess it depends how bad it is. I know he puts a lot of wear and tear on it, but it's not like he's a pitcher or anything either.

[Kalidogg24]

A tear in the rotator cuff ain't no joke but it isn't as horrible as like an Achilles or ACL injury.

Either way he needs to sit this season out as it's obvious that this current squad ain't going anywhere. Tank On.

I'm confident Kobe's shoulder will completely heal but will he still be motivated to come back for his 20th season if Mitch and Jimmy can't get him some help?

[Jeremy Lin 7]

Sucks, hopefully he comes back this season and plays a few more games. It'll be a shame to end his season with another injury especially one he is capable of coming back from.

[Fidel Sarcasmo]

so much for that bone broth

[Johnny Kilroy]

you know it was only like a decade ago that rotator cuff tears took 9-10 months to rehab. but we all know kobe will not let this get him down, even if he has to call it quits.

i'm a bulls fan, and i cringe every time someone tries to tell me lebron will be better than mj. he can never be better than mj. but when i was a kid in the 80s/90s, then mj retires, phil goes to LA, and the media begins a "is kobe the next jordan" atmosphere, and let me tell u, watching kobe, by 2001 his trajectory was so high i was truthfully worried he might be better than mj. for better or worse, that never happened, but i never felt jordan's legacy was threatened by lebron, but seeing kobe by 20/21, to me that was his peak, even if it was sidekick to shaq, he had all his athleticism, zero injuries, hungrier than all other nba players combined. and in those early 2000's he was clutch as hell, just lethal.

but i wish u guys the best...nba isn't the same without the lakers in prominence.

[leeprettyp]

They're are floating the idea out there that the Lakers could stretch Kobe's salary the next 3 seasons and that would open up an additional 16mill this offseason.

[Mamba Mentality]

If I remember correctly, insurance pays 80% of a players salary if a player misses 41 games in a year.... in other words shutting Kobe down is the best business move for the franchise. They just needed a reason.

[Penberthy]

If I remember correctly, insurance pays 80% of a players salary if a player misses 41 games in a year.... in other words shutting Kobe down is the best business move for the franchise. They just needed a reason.

Committing insurance fraud usually isn't the best business decision.

[Yuri Vaultin]

Wayne Ellington time?

[Slava]

They're are floating the idea out there that the Lakers could stretch Kobe's salary the next 3 seasons and that would open up an additional 16mill this offseason.

That'd be rather silly. Why take the hit for 3 seasons when you can be done by 2016?

[MAMBAEMD]

He needs to get the treatment he needs, now.
He should not play hurt.
The team also needs to start trading some guys (Hill, Wes, etc...)
We need to make sure we're in the top 5.
I'm not sure I'd stretch Kobe. I'd rather get his contract off of the books completely and not stretch it out over 3 years, only because it is a big contract and will still eat into the cap significantly even when stretched.

[Slava]

This is really the second time he played through a serious injury in the last couple seasons. He completed a game in Memphis with a fractured knee and now played through a torn rotator cuff yesterday. Gary Vitti really needs to step up his game and overrule the coaches in these situations.

[LebronLover23]

Damn, I was going to buy tickets for the Bulls vs Lakers game too next week to see Kobe play live one last time.

[LApwnd]

should just retire...wont happen cause this is a crappy way to go out but what is he and or the team really gona do next season if we don't sign a big name FA in addition to getting picks that make impact right away...those 2 things seem pretty unlikely together.

[leeprettyp]

This is really the second time he played through a serious injury in the last couple seasons. He completed a game in Memphis with a fractured knee and now played through a torn rotator cuff yesterday. Gary Vitti really needs to step up his game and overrule the coaches in these situations.

Man but at that some SPECIAL MOMENTS to remember right there

1) Shooting and making 2 clutch free throws with a torn achilles vs Gold State
2) Hitting a clutch deep 3 pointer with a fractured knee vs Memphis
3) Hitting a left handed fadeaway jumper vs the Pelicians

These are the moments that define Kobe to me. A tough as nails guy, winner who always left it all out on the court

[madmaxmedia]

He's had a great HOF career. He has got nothing to prove which is fortunate, because he also has nothing left in the tank.