Owner Real Deal Posted December 12, 2009 Owner Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Predictably sullen after fracturing his right index finger early in Friday's 104-92 victory over Minnesota, Kobe Bryant finally cracked a faint smile upon identifying the lone silver lining to the injury. "The debate over who has a better left hand between myself and Pau (Gasol) is over," he said. "No contest." Bryant jammed his finger on the ball stretching to catch an awkward first-quarter entry pass from Jordan Farmar, but he still scored a team-high 20 points despite playing exclusively with his left hand for long stretches of the game. In the second half, he wore a foam splint on the finger, which he said protected the injury but made it difficult for him to grip the ball shooting right-handed. "I'm concerned," Bryant said. "You just play through it and try to figure things out. Tomorrow will probably be the worst of it." While Bryant's latest finger injury is more serious than previous ones because the top joint of the index finger is so crucial to his shooting form, neither Jackson nor the rest of the Lakers seemed especially anxiety-ridden. They've seen Bryant overcome worse than this, and they believe his supporting cast is potent enough to pick up the slack, if necessary. "He's not going to let something like that hamper the team's effort," Jackson said. "And that's remarkable, to think about." http://www.pe.com/sports/basketball/lakers/stories/PE_Sports_Local_W_lakers_12.4943b99.html Man. Bryant has an avulsion fracture, in which a small piece of bone tears away near a ligament or tendon.http://sports.mobile.msn.com/en-us/articles.aspx?aid=10513282&acid=2&afid=0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GamerGuy Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Sucks, and we're about to go on the road too. I think Kobe will drop down into the paint a little bit more now, use his left handed post moves to score. He'll also facilitate more too, at least until he can get comfortable wearing that wrap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChosenOne Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Nothing a role of tape cant fix. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owner Real Deal Posted December 12, 2009 Author Owner Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Nothing a role of tape cant fix.Would be nice if that were true, but I'm really worried right now. He actually started playing much more with his left after he got hurt. If it were the pinkie, it would be different. You don't use the pinkie when you shoot the basketball (you aren't supposed to, anyways, just part of the base, not the push-off, if that makes sense). But the index finger is most important, even with dribbling and pointing it to tell Sasha Vujacic where to go. All jokes aside, it's a bad deal. When Jordan busted his index finger up, he had to go through extensive shooting programs to redefine his jumper, and his percentages dropped below 50% all three years of the second dynasty. Bryant dislocated this same finger, but this is a fracture, so it's much worse. Dislocations need the tape. This will need a splint. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren2ThaG Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Sucks to have an injured finger(s) on the shooting hand. Less freedom with your game and have to be more careful. Hope he can play through this ok and not affect his thinking too much. Get well -_-. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChosenOne Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Would be nice if that were true, but I'm really worried right now. He actually started playing much more with his left after he got hurt. If it were the pinkie, it would be different. You don't use the pinkie when you shoot the basketball (you aren't supposed to, anyways, just part of the base, not the push-off, if that makes sense). But the index finger is most important, even with dribbling and pointing it to tell Sasha Vujacic where to go. All jokes aside, it's a bad deal. When Jordan busted his index finger up, he had to go through extensive shooting programs to redefine his jumper, and his percentages dropped below 50% all three years of the second dynasty. Bryant dislocated this same finger, but this is a fracture, so it's much worse. Dislocations need the tape. This will need a splint. He is Kobe Bryant no way this stops him from playing at the level he has been playing at, but even if he has to take a break from the game (maybe a couple of weeks) the lakers still have a good enough squad to continue playing at a very high level. If you think about it if Kobe were to sit out that would force the Lakers to play alot better in the long run that can very much be very benefical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owner Real Deal Posted December 12, 2009 Author Owner Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 The thing that bugs me is that we start our five or six game road trip. We don't play the likes of Boston or Orlando on the road yet, but Utah is 10-3 at home, Milwaukee at 8-3, and Detroit probably has a winning record at home as well. Without Kobe, that might be a struggle, because we are thin at the two. Shannon Brown will have to start, and that means we play Vujacic off the bench, and we all know how that goes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChosenOne Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 (edited) The thing that bugs me is that we start our five or six game road trip. We don't play the likes of Boston or Orlando on the road yet, but Utah is 10-3 at home, Milwaukee at 8-3, and Detroit probably has a winning record at home as well. Without Kobe, that might be a struggle, because we are thin at the two. Shannon Brown will have to start, and that means we play Vujacic off the bench, and we all know how that goes. Hey giving Sasha more minutes might just turn him into the machine again who knows. Yeah it is going to be tough on the road against those opponents but even without Kobe you guys still should be able to manage in all of them. I think the starting line up should be changed to (if kobe is out) Fisher (lol still have not lived down him get [expletive] on)ArtestOdomGasolBynum It would be a big line up but it would work out especially agaist the smaller teams they play on the road. If it does not work out they can always mix and match the next game. Edited December 12, 2009 by ChosenOne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Owner Real Deal Posted December 12, 2009 Author Owner Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Kobe says he's playing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChosenOne Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Kobe says he's playing. Well lets hope it doesn't hurt his game. I think he will be fine and still produce. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren2ThaG Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Well lets hope it doesn't hurt his game. I think he will be fine and still produce. Might hurt his %, and in games where we might need to come from behind he won't be as lethal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Artesticle Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 I heard it's not even that serious... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warren2ThaG Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 I heard it's not even that serious... Kobe told you that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Artesticle Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 (edited) Kobe told you that?No, I read a report on the internet somewhere. I'll see if I can find the link. And if you go according to Kobe's words, nothing is serious. Because as long as he has two legs and two arms, he will play. If it was really that serious, I'd hope he has the sense to sit out a couple of games, because these games mean nothing in the long run. I'm pretty sure he knows what he's doing. Edited December 12, 2009 by Willie Green Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenneral Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 This will definitely affect his game, regardless of what Kobe or the media are saying. Anytime you injure your dominant hand and opt to play through it, you're going to have to adjust. Don't expect him to be the same offensive player he's been thus far although he'll still put up decent numbers. At the end of the game though, I wouldn't want him shooting the final shot with his hand like this, that's all I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andreusito Posted December 12, 2009 Report Share Posted December 12, 2009 Might hurt his %, and in games where we might need to come from behind he won't be as lethal.That's pretty bad since he's the one with the lower percentages between TOP stars like Bron, Wade Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Be Like Mike Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Just when it looks like Kobe is about to have a career high FG%, ish like this happens. Just his luck. After the Bulls game, Im definitely more at ease. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Regime Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 Yeah for sure, definite sigh of relief. I dont expect this out of him every game though, Pau needs to get more touches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lone Wolf Posted December 16, 2009 Report Share Posted December 16, 2009 (edited) What he did last night, despite the turnovers (yeah, we know Phil Jackson), he played very damn well. To be able to shoot like that is beyond amazing. I think Skip Bayless said that Bryant is playing better this year compared to last year. That says a lot since Bayless is well-known to talk down on players. Edited December 16, 2009 by Lone Wolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy Posted December 17, 2009 Report Share Posted December 17, 2009 He's not human. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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