Kobe Bryant: Lakers Must Use Extreme Caution in Bringing Kobe Back from Injury

There's one thing the Lakers can't deal with this season: an extended injury to Kobe Bryant.

If they go through a long period of time without Bryant, they will go from a playoff team that needs to improve to contend for a title, to a team that needs a big improvement even to make the playoffs. 

According to the AP, Bryant is listed as day-to-day with a torn ligament in his right wrist. He won't play the team's preseason finale, which is obviously the right choice. But the caution needs to go beyond simply that. 

The Lakers begin their season on Christmas Day and play their sixth game of the season on New Years Day. Think about that kind of load. 

For a player that handles the ball and sees as much action as Bryant does, there's no time for the injury to heal.

These aren't the kind of injuries that heal with anything other than time. It's hard to imagine this injury ever healing if Bryant isn't benched for some games early on, or at least forced to cut his minutes back. 

Getting to the playoffs won't be a problem for the Lakers. They may lack the talent and depth to make a serious title run, but that doesn't mean a Top 8 finish in the Western Conference won't happen.

What that means is that they can afford to take a few losses early in the year. That's what would likely happen with Bryant sitting, or at least taking significant minutes off, but this isn't an option. 

If Bryant is rushed back to action, the Lakers risk him losing his effectiveness later in the season, if he's even on the court. 

The Lakers have too much to lose by playing Bryant too much too early in the season. If they are going to the playoffs, the Lakers can make a midseason move to jump into title contention. 

Rushing Bryant back to full action would spell certain doom for the Lakers. It may cost them some big early-season games, but they need to be highly cautious when letting him return from this injury.

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