The Lakers confirmed after Saturday’s practice that Kobe Bryant has indeed completely torn his Achilles tendon, which occurred on Friday during the game against the Golden State Warriors. Bryant has already undergone surgery to repair the tendon, then he will begin the six to nine month recovery process. According to Lakers Nation reporter, Serena Winters, Vitti described the injury as a “third-degree rupture,” and a recovery process that is not worth speeding up.
“This isn’t something you want to speed up or accelerate. You don’t want to lengthen the tendon too soon because then that destroys the repair. It’s a very delicate process of getting the strength and length back into the tendon without overloading it too soon.”
As Winters’ reports, head athletic trainer Gary Vitti is using the start of next season as the goal for his return. Check out our Lakers Nation video of Gary Vitti, discussing Kobe injury in depth, his hopeful return, his motivation, and more.
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