Dwyane Wade broke Kobe Bryant’s nose at the 2012 NBA All-Star Game, but he has no intention of breaking the Black Mamba’s spirits.
Bryant will be sidelined for the next six-to-nine months as he works his way back from a ruptured Achilles, and while some will doubt his ability to return to form, the Miami Heat shooting guard doesn’t (via Chris Tomasson of Fox Sports):
Dwyane Wade fully believes that Kobe Bryant will return from his injury to be the old Kobe.
“I sent out a tweet yesterday and I reached out to Kobe,’’ Wade said when I asked him about Bryant’s injury. “Obviously, it’s unfortunate that this happened. He was having a hell of a year. You talk about somebody willing a team to a goal, he was doing that. So losing Kobe for our game, it’s not anything that we want to do. But the only thing you think of when you see someone like and you hear his interview, you know that he’s going to do everything in his power to come back and be the Kobe Bryant that everybody has become accustomed to. So you can believe it when he said it.’’
Moms first PJ flight… Feels good to be able to do things for the ones you love.. instagram.com/p/YDACoPFCKc/
— Way of WADE (@DwyaneWade) April 13, 2013
Wade is no stranger to returning from injuries himself (he’s never played a full 82 games in his career), so his vote of confidence should mean something to the Los Angeles Lakers’ star. Well, it should mean more to Kobe’s fan base, because you already know Bryant has every intention of returning just as potent as he was.
Remember, Bryant is a freak. In a good way. Okay, mostly in a good way. He refuses to yield to anything, especially injuries. That much has been evident for nearly 20 years and was clear as day when he knocked down two free throws after initially suffering this injury against the Golden State Warriors. And that much will still be apparent once he returns to the court and continues to put points on the board and money in Los Angeles’ wallet.
I’m not saying he’s going to come back and score 50 points in the Lakers’ first game of the 2013-14 season (though he might), but if we’ve learned anything about Kobe over these last 17 years, it’s that he’s a perennial contrarian. Pundits chide him for his shooting, so he shoots more. They say he’s selfish, so he passes more. They assert that he’s too old to lead the Lakers, so he puts the team on his back and does just that (though he should’ve deferred to Howard).
I’m not a doctor. And neither is Wade. Most of you reading this probably aren’t either. But it doesn’t take one to understand the unrelenting athlete that is Kobe.
He’s going to come back, that’s not even a question. As for whether or not he’ll be the same player, that much is up for debate. To that, however, we must understand (once again) that this is Kobe. He is going to do everything in his power to make sure he comes back in tip-top shape, and he will put himself in the best possible position to succeed.
So we needn’t worry too much. One day, the NBA will lose one of the greatest players to ever grace the hardwood. But don’t mistake the currently cloudy and damp climate as that day. Don’t believe that this is the end of the Mamba as we know it.
Instead, believe that he’ll come back. Believe this is possible. Believe Wade.
Believe in Kobe.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com. Follow @danfavale on Twitter for his latest posts and all things NBA.
