Kobe- torn Achilles. Done. Out for season and playoffs

Sucks that one of the greatest of all time went down like that and its putting the future of his career in jeopardy. Not that his career thus far hasn't been pretty epic, but a few more years of good production and he could have achieved a lot more as far as records, rankings in certain statistical categories, and maybe be in the hunt for another ring or two.

Seems like a shitty guy but I still wouldn't wish the ACL tear on him. As has been chronicled, D'Antoni is an absolute moron and hes essentially deferring to Kobe as the alpha on the team. Wouldn't surprise me if they perform well in the POs as they can go full D'Antoni ball if Nash comes back. But it will be fools gold.

And for all those saying Dwight will leave now...I see it completely the opposite. Dwight wants to be the #1 guy on one of the big market teams. Hes got that now. Seems like he made it pretty clear during his tantrum in Orlando that he wouldn't play anywhere but NY, Dallas, or LA. Playing with other stars and winning is secondary to getting all the attention in a big market. He didn't want to play in OKC, don't think he'll want to play in Houston.

And I'm probably making a reach here but the refs' fix to get the Lakers the win might have been a contributing factor in Kobe's injury. When Festus came to help on that play after Klay got beat (I think it was Klay) he laid a hard foul likely knowing that if he contested it would have been a foul and with Kobe it could be an and-1. He fouled him hard, but not in a dirty way, and Klay sandwiched Kobe in mid air and Kobe came down awkwardly.

 

Kobe Bryant ‏@kobebryant

MRI time


http://instagram.com/p/YDobvERNi4/#


Kobe Bryant ‏@kobebryant


Surgery prep time. Lookin like Mrs Doubtfire with a jerri curl cap lol Anesthesia next #highasakite…



http://instagram.com/p/YDpvSYRNlS/#

 

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. -- Kobe Bryant will have surgery Saturday afternoon to repair the torn Achilles tendon in his left leg and his recovery timetable is expected to take 6-9 months, according to longtime Los Angeles Lakers trainer Gary Vitti.

"When something like this happens, everybody wants to know why and there's not always a reason why. If you look at our season, it's been a nightmare," Vitti said following Lakers practice Saturday. "We had a player come in with a surgery, which was Dwight Howard. Then we had Steve Nash break his leg. Then we had Steve Blake have an abdominal surgery. Then we had Jordan Hill with a hip surgery. Then we had Metta (World Peace) with a knee surgery. We also had Dwight with a (torn) labrum in his shoulder. Antawn Jamison will have surgery after the season is over on his wrist. So, when you try to look at the whys, it's bad luck."

Vitti said Bryant would be immobilized up to a month or more following surgery. If Bryant were to recover on the short end of the timetable Vitti provided, he could be able to play for the start of the 2013-14 season.

"That's the plan," Vitti said.

Bryant's injury was described as a "complete rupture" by Vitti.

"It's gone," said Vitti. "So, it has to be sewn back together."

Bryant fell to the floor with 3:08 remaining in the fourth quarter while being guarded by the Warriors' Harrison Barnes. Bryant had played every minute of the game up to that point, scoring 32 points in the process -- including back-to-back 3-pointers to tie the game with 3:45 remaining.

"I made a move that I make a million times and it just popped," said Bryant after the game.

Bryant asked Barnes if he had kicked him in the leg. When Barnes said he hadn't, Bryant said he knew that a major injury had occurred.

"I was just hoping it wasn't what I knew it was," Bryant said. "Just trying to walk it off, hoping that the sensation would come back, but no such luck."

Following a timeout, Bryant went back into the game and hit both of his free throw attempts with the injury to end his night with 34 points, five rebounds and four assists before being subbed out for World Peace and heading to the locker room.

"MRI, surgery and then recovery," Bryant replied when asked what his next step is. "I was really tired, man. Just tired in the locker room and dejected and thinking about this mountain to overcome. I mean, this is a long process and wasn't sure I could do it. Then your kids walk in and you're like, 'I need to set an example. Daddy is going to be fine.' I can do it. Work hard and just go from there."

Recovering from surgery to repair a torn Achilles can take anywhere from three months to a year. The Los Angeles Clippers' Chauncey Billups recently went through the process. Hall of Famer Charles Barkley's career came to an end because of it, as did the career of Bryant's longtime teammate Shaquille O'Neal.

"I've never really had to deal with something like this," said Bryant. "It's a new experience for me. Obviously, there's been a bunch of players that have had the same injury, so, all I can do is look at them and what they've done and who had more success coming back quicker and healthier and see what they did and see if I can improve upon it."

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/...os-angeles-lakers-6-9-months-achilles-surgery

 

He did say he was doped out of his mind on pain killers.