Lakers Just Fine When Kobe Rests
The Lakers have won two games without Kobe, a sign he can take his time and get healthy.
Getty Images
LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 18: Kobe Bryant #24 of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts during the game against the Orlando Magic on January 18, 2010 at Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
Kobe Bryant didn’t go to work last Saturday, same with Monday. He’s questionable for Wednesday and the big All-Star game next Sunday.
Most of us crave a few days off from work. For Bryant, it’s hell. Kobe’s iron will and insane work ethic are why he makes the most of his gifts when other NBA players coast. He outworks everybody — first guy in the gym, last guy out of the film room. Winning matters. Being the best drives him.
That drive also means nagging injuries don’t always get a chance to heal. Maybe could play through anything when he was 23, but he’s not 23 anymore — he is 31 and has played 43,387 minutes over the course of 14 NBA seasons (counting playoffs). That’s more than Larry Bird before injuries ended his career. It’s more than Magic Johnson. It’s basically right about the career ending number for many of the game’s legends.
And Kobe is still going strong, playing at the highest level of his career. His team is the defending NBA champions. But his body does not bounce back like it used to. Sprained ankles after Lamar Odom steps on your foot take a little longer to heal, it takes longer before the explosive dunks return. Sore backs stay sore a little longer. Fractured fingers don’t heal as fast while you play through it.
Bryant knows all this — but his warrior mentality that has served him so well in life is becoming a challenge as his body ages. What makes Kobe fascinating is he is like the lead character in a classic Greek tragedy — his greatest strength is his greatest weakness. The will and drive that made him the best player of a generation is the same thing that makes it nearly impossible for him to take his foot off the gas now.
Lakers trainer Gary Vitti said he would like Kobe to sit out through the All-Star Game. Bryant laughed and said, “of course he did.” Phil Jackson knows better than to try to tell Kobe what to do, he is just staying out of the way. Kobe said he is a game-time decision for both.
But Kobe needs to consider sitting out through the All-Star Game. Not because the Lakers are better without Kobe — they’re not — but the last two games (wins over Portland and San Antonio) show they can survive without him for a while. He can take a short break and the team will keep on.
Bryant knows all this, intellectually. But will the drive that made him push his body to be one of the all time greats allow him to give his body the rest it needs as he ages? That remains to be seen.
Kurt Helin lives in Los Angeles and is the lead writer on NBC's NBA blog Pro Basketball Talk (which you can also follow in twitter).
