Kobe Bryant Injury: LA Lakers' Troubles Hit New Low with Mamba's Concussion

In a season where nothing seems to be going right for the Lakers, they just hit another bump in the road as Kobe Bryant has been diagnosed with a concussion. 

It is only typical of the Lakers' season that this concussion occurred in the one place where you wouldn't expect this kind of on-court injury. 

Bryant took a hard foul from Dwyane Wade after Wade decided that would be the one possession where defense was actually played in an all-star game. 

At first, the only setback appeared to be a broken nose. That is a painful injury, but it is not enough to keep ironman Bryant out of action. 

However, after Kobe saw a couple of specialists on Tuesday, it was found there is more to this injury. 

The Orange County Register's Kevin Ding tweeted out the concussion news.

"

Neurologist's review of Kobe determines a concussion was suffered. Kobe will be re-evaluated tomorrow. Could still play tomorrow night.

— KEVIN DING (@KevinDing) February 29, 2012"

If it was up to Kobe, it is safe to say he would not miss a minute. However, the NBA has begun to take concussion precautions like other leagues, and the decision to return to play is out of Kobe's hands. 

The Black Mamba is going to have to pass a series of tests before he is cleared to play. 

It is pretty useless to speculate when he will be able to return. But it is certainly not out of the question that he could miss some time. 

We have recently seen players like Sidney Crosby and Justin Morneau miss around a year for concussion symptoms. 

Any absence of length will completely derail the Lakers' season. Kobe is the heart of this team. He is averaging nearly 11 points more than their next leading scorer. 

He is also their only threat in the backcourt. LA has no hope of replacing Bryant with this roster. Losses will pile up in a hurry every game Bryant misses.