Kobe Bryant is out indefinitely after spraining his left ankle at the end of the Los Angeles Lakers’ 96-92 loss to the Atlanta Hawks Wednesday.
Bryant attempted a baseline jumper in the final seconds and landed on defender Dahntay Jones leg, which caused him to land awkwardly and roll his ankle.
X-rays on Bryant’s ankle were negative, but he is said to have a “severe” sprain. The team reportedly says he is out indefinitely.
Bryant had 33 points on 11-for-33 shooting in the loss. The Lakers play at Indiana Friday, host Sacramento Sunday, visit the Phoenix Suns on Monday, and host the Wizards on Friday. They are currently eighth in the Western Conference standings.
Even if Kobe is out for a week and a half, the team should be able to do fine without him given the favorable schedule.
UPDATE: As Nate Jones points out, an interesting twist to this story is that Dahntay Jones has a history of trying to injure Kobe. Watch this video from the 2009 Western Conference Finals when the Lakers faced the Nuggets:
Jones denied trying to intentionally injure Bryant on the play.
Tape doesn’t lie. Ankle was turned on the floor after the leg kick out that knocked him off balance. I would never try to hurt the man
— Dahntay (@dahntay1) March 14, 2013
Bryant apparently was pretty upset with Jones after the game, feeling like he Jones in his foot intentionally. Bryant felt like at the very least, a foul should have been called.
#dangerousplay that should have been called. Period.
— Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant) March 14, 2013
Video via Eye on Basketball
