Kobe Bryant to have surgery on rotator cuff

January 26, 2015

What was feared by many Lakers fans is now official: Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant has agreed to have surgery on his injured shoulder.

The surgery is set for Wednesday morning.

Bryant injured his right shoulder on a dunk in last Wednesday night’s game against the Pelicans, and was diagnosed with a torn rotator cuff.  He was examined this morning by Dr. Neal ElAttrache of the Kerlan Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic, who confirmed that earlier diagnosis and advised Bryant to have surgery to repair the shoulder.

Most likely, Bryant will be out for the remainder of the season, and will certainly miss the All-Star Game in February.  An official timeline estimate for Bryant’s return will be issued following the surgery.

Of course, the silver lining to this injury is that the Lakers can now "tank" without appearing to be deliberately throwing away their season.  If they can "succeed" in piling up enough losses to get a top-five lottery pick, then the team will keep its first round draft choice rather than having it go to the Phoenix Suns via the Steve Nash trade.

Considering that the team was going absolutely nowhere with Kobe -- who was playing on a mere part time basis at the time -- the injury actually should be viewed as a blessing in disguise to the franchise.

Lakers to hold training camp in Hawaii

Apparently, the Lakers cannot wait for this nightmare season to end because the All-Star break is still weeks away, and the team already is announcing its plans for next season's training camp.

In a move to recapture some of the franchise's tradition, and to perhaps have the collateral benefit of attracting star free agents, Los Angeles Lakers president Jeanie Buss announced today that the team will hold its 2015 training camping in Hawaii, returning to the islands for the first time since 2007.

“Hawaii has been like a second home to the Lakers since my father first took the team there in 1988,” said Buss. “The love and support we’ve always received from the people in Hawaii has meant so much to us over the years, and we’re thrilled to be returning there next fall and seeing so many of our loyal fans.”

In addition to holding their training camp in Honolulu at the University of Hawaii, the Lakers will also play two preseason games at the Stan Sheriff Center, on October 4 and October 6.

The Lakers have held training camp in Hawaii 12 times since 1988.

By Staff of TheDailySportsHerald.com and news services


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