It was the pop that was heard around the ball-playing world- Kobe Bryant tore his Achilles tendon (aka his “Laker maker”). Crushed under the heels of the San Antonio Spurs in four games, the Lakers got swept without the guy that ushered them into the playoffs. If nothing else, the Spurs-Lakers series is a testament to what happens when you lack Mamba.
Kobe has been a force so destructive that no injury (or even a rape allegation for that matter… too soon?) could conquer his ability to consistently dominate the league for 17 seasons. Slaying defenders since he was a teenager, LA’s golden child dropped to the feet of the Golden State Warriors in almost mythological fashion. Kobe’s injury is considered one of the most severe injuries a professional athlete can endure, which has many people believing this may be the Achilles’ heel of the Lakers (pun intended). Will biology catch up to the psychology of a champion? Or will the Bruce Leroy of this NBA shit show the world he’s the “Last Dragon?”
In medicine, the notion of bad things happening in threes is often tossed around. Bryant first hyper-extended his left-knee in the second half of that fateful game. After being examined by Lakers’ athletic trainer Gary Vitti, Kobe shook it off and went back to playing. A few minutes later he sprained the same knee, again. With the clock winding down in the final quarter and the game remaining close, Bryant stayed in the game. Strike three came with three minutes left to play, during a move that he’s done thousands of times—spin, cut, and push off the left foot past some fool to score an easy bucket. He made it two steps before collapsing to the floor and clutching his left leg in an excruciating amount of pain. “I made a move I’ve made a million times, and [the Achilles] just popped,” Bryant said with tears in his eyes and a diagnostic look on his face during the post-game interview. An MRI the following day that confirmed what he already knew- he completely tore his left Achilles tendon.
The term Achilles’ tendon has its roots in Greek mythology. Achilles’ mother, the Goddess Thetis, was given a prophecy that her son Achilles would die soon. In order to protect her son, she took him to the River Styx, whose waters were supposed to confer immortality on anyone who bathed in it. Thetis grabbed hold of Achilles’ heel and dipped his entire body into the river to protect him from harm (also a great mythological alibi for getting caught trying to drown your bratty ass kid). Since Thetis held on to Achilles’ heel as she dipped him in the river, it remained the one vulnerable spot in his body. Though Achilles fought in many battles, he was later killed in the Trojan War, when a poisoned arrow struck his unprotected heel (apparently the Trojans only protected sex). The Achilles’ tendon, anatomically known as the calcaneal tendon, is thought to run in roughly the same location Achilles’ mother held his heel, and as such, has come to be referred to as the Achilles tendon in contemporary medicine.
Tendons are rubber band-like structures that connect muscles to bones, so you can move your sexy self around. The Achilles is the Arnold Schwarzenegger of tendons- it’s the largest and strongest tendon in the human body. Its purpose is to connect your calf muscle (gastrocnemius for the nerd speakers) to your heel bone (thecalcaneus, if you want to be a jerk about it). The calf-Achilles-heel unit let’s people do things like walk, run, and jump. That same unit lets athletic freaks like Kobe take off into flight and posterize fools. Long story short, Kobe has a complete tear of the piece of connective tissue that allows him to jump! This injury brings new meaning to the term “jump off.”
Kobe is no stranger to injuries. In his sixteen years in the NBA, he has suffered his fair share. His arthritic right knee has long been a source of contention. Because of the constant wear and tear, the amount of cartilage in the knee has degenerated, leading to a painful condition in which Bryant’s knee bones rub together. This not only causes swelling and inflammation, but also causes small fragments of bone to chip off and collect around the kneecap. He has had fluid drained from the right knee multiple times during the season as well as surgery to remove the small fragments of bone. During the 2011 post-season, Bryant went to Germany to have an experimental procedure done on his right knee. The German treatment was an offshoot of a procedure known as platelet rich plasma therapy (PRP). PRP is a new, but unproven science that may speed up the repair to damaged tissues. It essentially utilizes the body’s ability to heal itself. In the procedure, blood is taken from an individual’s arm and spun down in a centrifuge to separate the different components of blood. Platelets, which are responsible for healing, are isolated and then injected into the injured area under ultrasound guidance in order to stimulate tissue repair. So can Kobe just shoot up his Achilles’ tendon with this magic PRP stuff and get back to business quicker? Wouldn’t be a good look. As controversial as PRP therapy is for any sports injury, several studies have shown PRP is not at all useful for Achilles’ tendon ruptures.
Maybe all those years of breaking ankles finally caught up to the superstar in one karmic event. The Basketball Gods and human biology finally agreed that Kobe’s Achilles tendon had enough. Bryant’s injury is undoubtedly rooted in overuse after 17 seasons and over 50,000 minutes of playing at 35 years of age.
Treatment for an Achilles tendon rupture depends on the severity of the tear. With partial tears, non-surgical options like a cast or walking boot are considered with the goal of immobilizing the tendon and allowing it to heal by its damn self. However, recovery times are longer and there is an increased risk of re-rupturing the same tendon with this route. In Kobe’s case, the only option was to surgically repair his tendon.
Drs. Stephen Lombardo and Neal ElAttrache of the Kerlan Jobe Orthopaedic Group in L.A. successfully reattached the pieces of Bryant’s shredded tendon last week. Dr. ElAttrache has performed hundreds of Achilles tendon repairs and was the same dude that repaired New England Patriots’ quarterback Tom Brady’s shredded knee in 2008. While details from Bryant’s surgery were not disclosed, Dr. ElAttrache is optimistic that Bryant will return to the NBA, estimating 6-9 months of recovery time before he can play. Several NBA players have come back from Achilles tendon ruptures including Hall of famer Dominique Wilkins, and most recently, Clippers’ star Chauncey Billups. But it has forced other NBA greats into retirement includingCharles Barkley and Bryant’s former teammate, Shaquille O’Neal.
In a recent study of NBA players after surgery for complete Achilles tendon ruptures, players showed a significant decrease in playing time and performance after returning. Almost 40% of the injured players studied over 20 years never returned to playing. In an interview with the L.A. Times, Dr. ElAttrache stated that Bryant’s determination and mental toughness will play a huge factor in getting him back into playing form, saying “I can point to all of the scientific aspects of the repair, but just as important if not more important is, who is that Achilles attached to? In this situation, it’s attached to Kobe Bryant, who has figured out a way to get through some injuries that would ordinarily be career-threatening. Some of the things he’s had go on with him have ended guys’ careers in the NBA.” There is certainly an X-factor when it comes to recovering after injury that is not directly measurable yet, but may very well be implied somewhere in the words of Bryant’s post-injury facebook status update:
“There are far greater issues/challenges in the world than a torn Achilles. Stop feeling sorry for yourself, find the silver lining and get to work with the same belief, same drive, and same conviction as ever.”
During the Lakers’ exit interviews after their disappointing post-season, Kobe was optimistic in his return and the ability of a healthy Lakers core (Bryant, Nash, Howard, Gasol, and Meta World Peace) to make another run at the championship (should they stay together next season). Kobe is hopeful about returning by the season opener, but understands that it all depends the progress he makes with rehabilitation over the next six months. In the press conference, Kobe expressed the reality of his situation by expressing not being sure how much longer he’ll play in the league. “The Achilles kind of threw me a curve ball.” As long as that doesn’t mean he is considering playing baseball like another former superstar who shall remain nameless, Kobe has the potential to lead one of the greatest legacies in all of sports pending one of the most anticipated injury comebacks in recent memory.
Injury Duty wishes Kobe Bryant a safe and effective recovery.
Kobe Bryant photographed by Jed Jacobsohn while celebrating defeating the New Jersey Nets in Game Four of the 2002 NBA Finals in East Rutherford, NJ - June 12, 2002
Kobe Bryant & Shaquille O’Neal photographed by Andrew D. Bernstein while laughing during a game at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, CA - Circa 1997
The University of Connecticut’s women’s basketball team honored Gianna Bryant at a game last night, the day after she and her father Kobe Bryant died in a helicopter crash.
Gianna, who was 13 when she died, had aspired to play for the NCAA team, and attended several UConn Huskies games with her dad, who once said she was “hellbent” on attending the college. In the wake of the tragic accident in Calabasas, California, that killed the pair and seven other people on Sunday, the UConn women’s team paid tribute to Gianna before their game against Team USA.
“Mambacita is forever a Husky,” they wrote, using the name Bryant had planned for his daughter to carry on his “Black Mamba” legacy on the court.
The former Los Angeles Laker died in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, alongside eight others on board. Bryant’s 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, was also among those dead.
“Kobe was a legend on the court and just getting started in what would have been just as meaningful a second act. To lose Gianna is even more heartbreaking to us as parents,” Obama wrote. “Michelle and I send love and prayers to Vanessa and the entire Bryant family on an unthinkable day.”
![[Stepping Out]](https://64.media.tumblr.com/8fb75bf4e56e9f6d29fc5b0d867aab87/tumblr_nkgfhbCumh1uoki1yo1_1280.jpg "[Stepping Out]")
