Lakers offcially announce Kobe Bryant has ruptured Achilles
By Daniel Nicks
Apr 12, 2013; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers shooting guard Kobe Bryant (24) reacts in front of Golden State Warriors small forward Harrison Barnes (40) during the game at Staples Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
“It’s a third-degree tear. It’s gone. Completely torn,” said team trainer Gary Vitti of Kobe Bryant’s ruptured Achilles.
It is anticipated that Bryant will take six to nine months to fully recover from the injury and the ‘plan’ is to have him back next season.
Vitti went on to state that he did not believe the excessive minutes Bryant had played of late was the cause of the injury. Rather that it ‘just bad luck’.
“It’s fueling me. It’s fueling me,” said Bryant. “I can feel it already. I can feel it already. Players at this stage they pop an Achilles, and the pundits say they never come back the same. So I can hear it already, and it’s [ticking] me off right now just thinking about it.”
With training camp set to begin in early October, it’s actually a possibility -although a stretch – that Bryant could be recovered by the start of next season.