Kobe Bryant likely out 9 months (surgery today)
http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/...os-angeles-lakers-6-9-months-achilles-surgery
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."
