Kobe Bryant Injury: Why Los Angeles Lakers Are Still NBA Finals Contenders

Even with the recent news of a Kobe Bryant’s torn ligament, the Los Angeles Lakers are still NBA Finals contenders.

After ESPN broke news that Kobe Bryant has suffered a torn wrist ligament four days before the Christmas Day season opener against the Chicago Bulls and that he would miss Wednesday’s exhibition game against the Los Angeles Clippers, many began to speculate that this could be the end of an era for the Los Angeles Lakers. With reason, I can attest that those critics have a very valid degree of truth behind their claims. I can also confidently say that I think they’re wrong.

Here is where the fun in journalism comes in. Los Angeles sports fans—and really, in a rare scenario of both national sports fans and people whose interest can be described as “casual” at most—have their own opinion on the exciting world that is suddenly Los Angeles basketball. With constant chatter of the new rivalry, journalists are able to channel the opinions and publish their own take on Lakers-Clippers.

What was once a scene dominated by purple and gold has, out of nowhere, morphed into a crosstown rivalry shared in one building located in downtown L.A., owned by a certain office supply company (hint: I’m talking about the Staples Center).

For those who’ve somehow missed it (or are basketball illiterate), a brief timeline and history lesson. For eons, the Los Angeles Lakers were the best team in the city. They have one of the two most storied franchises in the league (comparable to only the Boston Celtics and, on a good day, the Chicago Bulls) and generations of sports fans have seen all-time greats like James Worthy, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O’Neal, Jerry West, Magic Johnson and Kobe Bryant. Many of those names listed are American national icons. At their games it has become cultural capital to be seen: regulars include Jack Nicholson, Denzel Washington, David Beckham, Dustin Hoffman, Chris Rock, Adam Sandler, Will Ferrell, Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg.

Since the 2000s, the Los Angeles Lakers have added five more championships, giving them 16 total. In the past four seasons, they’ve been to the NBA Finals three times.

Last season ended poorly for the Lakers, as a second-round elimination to the soon-to-be-crowned NBA Champions sent them home for the summer earlier than usual. Many cited that moment—as star Lakers center and seven-footer Andrew Bynum tore off his jersey storming to the locker after being ejected after he clobbered a small Puerto Rican player named J.J. Barea—as the end for the Lakers. With Phil Jackson coaching his “final” playoff series, uncomfortable as ever on the sidelines watching, this was the end of something for the Lakers. But that something was the “Phil Jackson era,” not their reign of successes.

Their loss could be interpreted as a bit of a blessing in disguise for the Lakers. If anything, it was a humbling experience that made the drive and passion even stronger for the team. The Lakers came back hungry in the offseason and completed a deal that would have landed them the most coveted prize in the NBA’s offseason: superstar point guard from the New Orleans Hornets, Chris Paul. 

The nuances of what made the deal controversial can be read about in thousands of other articles online and don’t need to be explained here. Carouse around ESPN.com for no more than 10 seconds and you’ll find an explanation.

What was more interesting, however, was that the NBA vetoed the trade and that Chris Paul would not be allowed to play for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Paul, still seeking a trade at the time, found a shocking suitor in the Los Angeles Clippers.

The rivalry between the Lakers and Clippers has always been regarded as a bit of a joke. The Clippers generated mild interest at most, and generally they were seen as a blatant punch line before a legitimate basketball organization.

While the Lakers tout history, the Clippers have touted shame. They have never won a division title. They have never made it past the second round of the playoffs, let alone won a single NBA title. They’ve had two winning seasons since moving to Los Angeles in 1984. Their owner is regarded as a racist, a bigot and the most disliked owner in the NBA. They are recognized for common draft mistakes and suffering awful injuries year after year. The facts are indisputable. 

The tables had started to turn once they struck gold by landing NBA superstar Blake Griffin in the NBA draft in 2009, in which the team was able to build around the young showman. Now, with point guard Chris Paul and power forward Blake Griffin, two of the best young players in the league, the hype around “Lob City” is astounding.

Los Angeles fans recognize, however, that they’re still the Clippers.

Everything may have gone wrong for the Lakers since the NBA has come out of the lockout. They missed the chance to land Chris Paul due to the league absolutely shafting them. By trading him away in the vetoed move, they pissed off one of their veteran players, Lamar Odom, and were forced to trade him off the team again for very little value. Kobe Bryant’s wife filed for divorce, causing him to be obviously distraught. They lost to the Clippers in an exhibition game, with Bynum getting dunked on by Clippers center DeAndre Jordan. Somewhere in there, Ron Artest changed his name to “Metta World Peace” and delivered this gem of an interview. Now today’s news is that Kobe Bryant has suffered a torn ligament in his wrist.

Bryant, however, has played on worse. Doctors estimate that in the 2009-10 NBA Finals against the Celtics, Kobe was playing on 60 percent health at most. The Lakers still won.

Bryant has played on broken fingers, virtually no knees and awful ankles.

Don't get me wrong. The Los Angeles Lakers do not look “good” by any means. But that’s the thing about this season coming out of the lockout. No one looks good. OK, maybe the OKC Thunder and Miami Heat look good. Regardless, the lockout shortened the amount of practice time and offseason workouts. The Spurs and Celtics are getting significantly older, with both being led by their respective stars in Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett, who both could very well be in their final seasons in the NBA.

The Denver Nuggets have multiple players locked into contracts in China.

The Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles Clippers are young and inexperienced, and require team chemistry and coordination that they may not be able to prove in a shortened season.

LeBron James and the Miami Heat still suffer many of the depth questions that plagued them at the beginning of last season.

If there were an obvious “winner” to declare at the beginning of this season, there would be no need to play the game. Curiosity is a large part of the reason why fans tune in to watch sports to begin with.

Kobe Bryant knows that he is one championship away from tying Michael Jordan’s record of six rings.

The Lakers are still regarded as front-runners to land Dwight Howard, which would give them an elite core of players to build around in the coming years.

There is talk that the Clippers are a top-three seed and that the Lakers are a six-to-eight seed. On Twitter, I half-jokingly exploded that “they’re the Lakers, gosh dammit!!!!!” and that they’d find a way to win.

I say that I was half-joking because while it sounds absurd, the Lakers have a historic advantage. People want to pay to watch the purple and gold, and more so, kids dream of playing for the Lakers. Those kids grow up to be NBA superstars. One of those kids was Dwight Howard, whose respect for Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers is almost holy.

The Clippers are a new and exciting trend for Los Angeles sports fans. I’m all aboard the “Lob City” bandwagon, and I'll will passionately root for them to succeed if they aren’t playing the Lakers.

In fact, I grew up going to Clippers games due to family connections and a lack of financial standing to afford Lakers games. At every single one, alongside “Clipper Darryl” and among other die-hard Clippers fans, I had a fantastic time. One of my most prized possessions in my room is a large and now ironic picture of me with then-Clipper Lamar Odom, who stands almost two feet taller than I am in the picture. I truly want the Clippers to be a magnificent team, and I want the Clippers to emerge as a true rival for the Los Angeles Lakers.

But history does not change overnight.

When the season starts, tickets to a Clippers game will be a hotter commodity than ever. Still, the Lakers own the city until they are dethroned. That, my friends, could take awhile.

With two of the best big men in the game, as well as one of the most elite guards to ever touch a basketball, the Lakers are far from dead.

Let Kobe Bryant have his injury, and let him miss a game. Their postseason experience, legendary history and ownership of Kobe Bryant can still take them far this postseason.

Things may look ugly for the Los Angeles Lakers in Los Angeles, but they have yet to lose a game. To count them out this early would be utter blasphemy.

Kobe may have suffered a ligament injury against the Clippers in the exhibition game on Monday, but when the season begins, I won’t believe the Clippers are the better team until I see them making it past the Lakers in the playoffs.

Count Kobe Bryant out. If I know Kobe Bryant’s persona at all—and at this point in my life, that’s one thing that I’m confident that I do—it’s that he would love to go out there and prove you wrong.

That, watching and seeing what happens, is what the sports world and the NBA is all about. 

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