L.A. Lakers: Mike Brown Must Rest Kobe Bryant More or Risk a Devastating Injury

At 10-6, you really couldn't expect much more out of the Los Angeles Lakers early in the season.

They're going under a significant change in offensive style with new coach Mike Brown and attempting to compensate for the loss of reigning Sixth Man of the Year Lamar Odom. Possibly the largest obstacle that they've had to face, however, has been Kobe Bryant and the torn ligaments in his wrist.

Suffering the injury in a meaningless preseason game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Bryant was reported to have torn several ligaments in the wrist that's connected to his shooting hand.

Already playing with a few bum fingers on that hand, the wrist injury forces Bryant to continue learning how to shoot more with his left hand.

When Bryant went down with the injury and Lamar Odom left, nearly everyone began to discount the Lakers. Many had them losing out in the Pacific Division to the Los Angeles Clippers, finishing as a low seed in the Western Conference and ultimately called Kobe Bryant finished.

I've learned a lot through the years about the NBA. Doubting Kobe Bryant was one of them because he always seemed to unleash this pent-up rage and fury at the worst possible time for your team. You can talk down his performance in those situations by speaking of his low shooting percentage, but I can just about guarantee that every single person associated with the NBA will say that Kobe is the one person they want taking the last shot.

There's no debating that. If you want to win a game late, you give the ball to Bryant.

He's performed miracles in the past and has won five championships and two Finals MVPs because of how volatile and lethal he is when the game is on the line. He's a born leader and champion; it shows in his commitment to winning and attempting to be the best.

Just take a look at what he's done this year: At 33 years old and with a bad wrist on his shooting arm, Bryant is leading the league in scoring at 30 points per game and just recently scored 40 or more points in four consecutive games.

There are only so many players in the history of the game that could have performed such a feat at that age, but of course some will argue that it's just ball-hogging or any other excuse.

As amazing as it is to see Bryant not playing like his age, you have to question the motives of the Los Angeles Lakers coaching staff. We understand that the team lost Lamar Odom and that other players will have to step up in his place, but Kobe shouldn't be performing any of these feats. As much as we like to label Kobe as an entity, he is human just like the rest of us.

After playing 34 minutes per game last season—his lowest since the 1997-98 season when he still came off the bench—Bryant is currently playing 38 minutes per night and just recently played 41 against the Miami Heat.

That Heat game in general was questionable because the Lakers were down by double-digits for the majority of the second half, so why strain Kobe anymore?

Not to mention, he's also taking 25 shots per game. That's the most attempts he's averaged since the 2005-06 season when he was posting 35 per night. Problem is that Kobe Bryant isn't 27 and in his prime anymore.

Playing in 40,752 regular-season minutes and 8,165 postseason minutes after 15 years worth of an NBA career can take a toll on your body.

You might not be able to tell by his demeanor, but Bryant is hurting and is in a lot of pain. Any sane person would be out of commission for months after getting wrist surgery.

Kobe doesn't happen to be sane, however, and would instead take a shot before every game to ease the swelling and pain.

Kobe Bryant is an unbelievable asset to have on the court. He'll win you games by himself if he has to, as documented by the 81 points he scored in a comeback victory over Toronto. He's willing to do whatever it takes to win because he's just the type of player that isn't ready to settle for less. If he was someone who was willing to give it a rest once in awhile, he wouldn't have five championships and a first-ballot Hall of Fame nomination in the near future.

At this stage of his career, Bryant needs to give it a rest. He's performing like any shooting guard in their prime would, but he doesn't have the body, endurance or stamina to do this for an entire regular season and a lengthy postseason.

I know that there are many people out there who will doubt me when I say that, but Kobe Bryant is human and should not be playing nearly 40 minutes per night at his age, especially with those nagging ailments.

The Lakers have two other players who are capable of scoring; let them handle the scoring load for a little.

Pau Gasol can score 20 points on any given night and with Andrew Bynum finally becoming the player that the Lakers envisioned him to be, there should be less of a demand for Kobe if anything. Los Angeles wants to win games, but they should save that mentality for the postseason, where Kobe is at his best.

Seriously, would you want Kobe Bryant playing 40 minutes in the 16th game of the NBA season or playing 40 minutes in the final games of the Conference or NBA Finals? If he continues to play that much in the regular season, he's not going to have the same type of energy and endurance that he usually plays with deep into the postseason.

The Lakers need to give it a rest in the regular season. Outside of the Clippers, they're in a poor division that features three teams that will probably all finish below the .500 mark. Unlike the Eastern Conference where there are two teams that reign supreme, the Western Conference is wide open.

You can easily vouch for the Oklahoma City Thunder, Dallas Mavericks, L.A. Lakers, L.A. Clippers or Portland Trail Blazers as possible contenders for the title game.

If Kobe plays 30 minutes per game, you won't get the greatest regular-season record, but you'll have a two-time Finals MVP and five-time champion ready for the postseason, if that provides any sort of compensation.

If you wanted to watch a team win a whole bunch of regular-season games and then do nothing in the postseason, watch the Dallas Mavericks for the past decade.

For now, the Lakers need to give Bryant a rest on the minutes and allow Bynum and Gasol to get more looks down low. They're both capable of putting up 20 points per night and they both have tremendous advantages as two big men who can consistently score. There are only so few teams in this league that can match up with two lengthy frontcourt players in Bynum and Gasol.

Quality post players are a rare commodity to have and the Lakers happen to have two of them. Allow them to run the show for now and give Bryant some time to regroup.

When the postseason comes around and he's healthy after only playing in 30 minutes per night, you'll see the benefits of a well-rested Kobe.