Despite rampant retirement talks over the last few seasons, a source told ESPN Los Angeles' Ramona Shelburne that Bryant wants "two more cracks at it to win seven NBA titles at least."
Looking for something to fuel his taxing rehab from the torn Achilles that stole the final weeks of his 2012-13 season from him, the Mamba tasked the Twitter world to find the perfect slogan for his long road back to the hardwood. He settled on a winner on Friday afternoon, sparking a near-riot in Lakers Nation in the process:
And the winner is... @eyydylan_ from #instagram! Thank you for all the submissions #thelastchapter #mambacurialpack pic.twitter.com/GuO8kauF7b
— Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant) June 14, 2013 With just one year left on his current contract, fans wondered just how many pages that "Last Chapter" would be. He's always maintained that he won't play once his body strips him of his elite-level talent, so he's been facing a host of retirement questions since suffering that painful Achilles tear.
For his part, Bryant has refused to let the injury determine the fate of his career. In fact, the 34-year-old plans to play in L.A.'s season opener some six-plus months after tearing the tendon.
It's an optimistic time frame for sure, but one that team trainer Gary Vitti says is impossible to rule out this early in the rehab process.
"We don't know yet," Vitti told NBA.com's Mike Trudell. "Kobe looks exactly the way he's supposed to look at this point in time. Kobe makes you look good as a training staff...we always feel good about how he's going to recover from anything, and that's a credit to him."
If Bryant's telling the truth and really eyeing just two more years in the league, it's hard to imagine him not doing everything in his power to maximize his ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
