Lakers down 107-101 to the Golden State Warriors with 5:06 left in the game. Bang. Kobe Bryant hits a 3-pointer from the left wing with Harrison Barnes in his face, to cut the Warriors’ lead to 107-104. Lakers down 107-104 with 3:48 left in the game. Bang, yet again. Kobe drains a 3-pointer at the top of the key over Barnes to level the game at 107-107. Whatever it took, Kobe was there to make sure his team was going to win the ball game on Friday night. Despite breathing heavily running up and down the court following 5 straight games of 41 minutes or more, there he was at his 34 years of age, playing in the 45th minute while willing his team towards victory. Whether it be banging up his left knee on a prior baseline drive against two defenders, or hurting his leg while spinning towards the middle of the key, Kobe wasn’t going to let his body get in the way of delivering on the promise he made earlier this season. The genuine faith he displayed in his team by confidently guaranteeing that these Los Angeles Lakers, as tumultuous as the season has been, were going to make the postseason. However, with 3:10 left in the game, everything he had worked so diligently for all season came crashing down. On the floor was Kobe, tenderly clutching his left heel. An expression of shock and disbelief on his face, with mixed emotions that had not yet come to the grips of reality: a torn Achilles tendon.
Despite his injury, Kobe still had the fortitude to shake off the pain and step to the free throw line on one foot. He delivered two clutch free throws, which not only tied the game at 109 all, but also were the deciding factors in the two-point victory over the Warriors. Two swishes by the hobbled Lakers’ captain to cap off the last 8 Lakers points. The number 8, which was the number on the back of the arrogant and talented young buck who entered the league in 1996; yet threatens to be the swan song, to the career of arguably our generation’s greatest athlete and competitor. During the postgame interview, the voice of the Lakers, John Ireland, asked Kobe on his injury, “You’ve had tons and we’ve watched tons of professional and personal challenges in your career. Is this at the top of the list?” With eyes blazing he answered, “Yeah, but it’s fueling me. It’s fueling me. I can feel it already. I can feel it already. It’s just, you know, players at this stage of their career, they pop an Achilles and the pundits say that they never come back the same. So I can hear it already. And it’s pissing me off right now just thinking about it.” It wasn’t only Lakers fans who shed tears today, but fans of basketball around the world. However, rest assured. The man won’t quit, cower, or run. He will endure, rise above and conquer. Kobe Bean Bryant: coming back with a vengeance in 2014.
image from ESPN
