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Kobe Bryant scheduled for surgery on Wednesday

ByEvan Massey|
Jan 21, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (24) against the New Orleans Pelicans during the first quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Pelicans defeated the Lakers 96-80. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 21, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant (24) against the New Orleans Pelicans during the first quarter of a game at the Smoothie King Center. The Pelicans defeated the Lakers 96-80. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant is scheduled for surgery on his torn right rotator cuff on Wednesday morning.

Kobe Bryant showed this season that he is still capable of playing at a very high level after suffering through two straight seasons with major injuries. Unfortunately, he once again went down and will miss the remainder of the regular season with a torn right rotator cuff.

Surgery is scheduled for Wednesday morning, and it further solidifies that the Los Angeles Lakers are going to end up with another top draft pick. Bryant has the heart of a warrior, and he isn’t going to let this situation bring him down for too long.

Throughout the first 35 games that Bryant played in this season, he has averaged 22.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 5.6 assists per game. At 36 years of age, after the injuries he has dealt with, those numbers aren’t shabby at all.

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It is too bad that his season is ending with yet another serious injury. There are some that don’t believe Bryant will return next season, but there are others that don’t expect him to allow a torn rotator cuff to end his career. Either way, he only has one more year on his deal after this season.

The Lakers are currently sitting at 12-33 on the season, and their playoff chances are gone anyway. Bryant was likely going to get shut down by the Lakers following the All-Star break to protect him from injuries. Even though he is going to have surgery and a recovery period, the injury happening at this point in the year will give him plenty of time to get back to full strength for next season.

Hopefully he is able to get back to full strength again and play one more full season before he retires. He has meant so much to the game, and it is going to be a sad day when he officially files for retirement.

All of that being said, the Lakers are already beginning to look ahead past Bryant. They know that they need to bring in another star or two that can take over for him when he leaves, but they would like to give him one more chance at winning another title. Whether or not that happens, he is one of the best players to ever play the game of basketball and will never be forgotten.

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