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| Kobe is primed to return to game action sooner than later |
Kobe Bryant has yet to play in the 2013-14 season in which his Lakers are a mediocre 5-7. The veteran superstar torn his Achilles last year and is still recovering, but did receive good news recently, as he was cleared to practice and return to basketball activities by team doctors, according to Kevin Ding of Bleacher Report (via Mike Trudell of Lakers.com).
Los Angeles, still led by embattled head coach Mike D'Antoni, clearly misses its franchise cornerstone, who, at the age of 35, might be slowing down a bit. Still, though, with the offseason departure of Dwight Howard to the Rockets, Bryant is a massive part of the Lakers' gameplan and is a incredibly big figure throughout the NBA and American sports in general as well.
According to Trudell's article on the Lakers official website, Kobe participated in LA's practice on Saturday for the first time in over six months. Now, just playing in practice may not mean much on its own — since Bryant just performed in drills without significant defensive opposition — but it is certainly a great sign going forward for the Lakers.
Kobe might not return this week or even this month, but it is looking likely that he will be back on the floor for a real game before the New Year, and quite possibly much earlier in December.
