Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Says Kobe Bryant Won’t Be the Same Player This Season


If Kobe Bryant needs any more motivation as he makes his way back from Achilles surgery, he should listen to what Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has to say. Cap says the Black Mamba will be slow to return, and won’t be the same player when he steps back on the court. Per CBS Sports: “It’s a rebuilding year for them because Kobe has been hurting and he has a very devastating type of injury,’ Abdul-Jabbar said. ‘I don’t think he will be able to come back as quickly and completely as he would like. It’s gonna be tough on the Lakers this year.’ Then, Abdul-Jabbar hit the Lakers with a dose of reality, a grim possibility that no Lakers fan would want to contemplate. ‘When Kobe does come back, it’s gonna be a different Kobe and that will definitely effect the outcome for the Lakers long-term,’ Abdul-Jabbar said. ‘… It’s gonna be a test for him this year, absolutely.’ Bryant, 35, has been one of the most durable marvels of modern athletics. Nothing, it seemed, would keep him down for long. But the notion that Bryant would just put on his Kobe face, breeze through rehab and go right back to draining 20-foot, fadeaway jumpers on opening night was flawed from the beginning. The reality, as Abdul-Jabbar alluded to, is that Bryant is in the fight of his basketball life.”