Kobe Bryant will once again be ending his season early. The Los Angeles Lakers star has barely been seen on the court over the past two years and now this season will be no different. The veteran suffered a torn rotator cuff over the weekend. It was unknown the severity of the injury. Bryant was planning to seek a second opinion to try and avoid any type of surgery, but in the end the star will undergo season-ending surgery, but is confident in a return next year.
Bryant confirmed to the Player's Tribune that he will have surgery to repair the rotator cuff and miss the remainder of the season. The 36-year-old has suffered his third-straight season-ending injury after suffering a torn Achilles and a knee injury over the past two years. Prior to his injury, Bryant was averaging lows in all statistical categories with just 22.3 points and 5.7 rebounds in 35 games played. With the Lakers essentially out of the playoffs, it makes sense for Bryant to simply shut it down. His injury comes with the season-ending injuries of Steve Nash and Julius Randle the derailed the entire season plan.
Bryant will still have one more year remaining on his contract and he fully intends on using it. The star is set to earn $25 million next year and after hinting at retirement, Bryant intends to come back once again. According to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times, Bryant confirmed that he will return in 2015, not wanting to end his career on this injury and he fully intends to be an active recruiter for free agents this summer.
The Lakers have targeted the upcoming summer to load up on big names for the future. The team will have a large amount of salary cap space to work with when Nash, Jeremy Lin and Carlos Boozer come off the pay roll. The team is aiming to get plenty of big names despite players like Rajon Rondo and Kevin Love likely being unavailable.
The Lakers need a long-term point guard and could target either Goran Dragic or Reggie Jackson in the upcoming free agency run. They have also been linked to deals for LaMarcus Aldridge, Greg Monroe and Marc Gasol. Other options could include Paul Millsap, Jeff Green and Jimmy Butler.