Nick Young (#0) of the Los Angeles Lakers # of the Sacramento Kings during their preseason game at the MGM Grand Garden Arena on October 10, 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Rarely have we seen and heard Kobe Bryant exercise such patience.
Yet, Bryant chided reporters, broadcasters and the general public alike for remaining “hellbent on timelines.” Well, duh. Bryant remains the Lakers’ best player, and the team’s success largely hinges on how quickly he returns and how well he plays after healing his surgically repaired left tendon. One would think Bryant would want to play in the Lakers’ season opener Oct. 29 against the Clippers at Staples Center.
That became a topic of discussion on Time Warner Cable’s Access SportsNet recently where host Chris McGee, analyst Dave Miller and I focused on what’s making Bryant tick these days.
Miller notes the irony in Bryant’s adamant that he doesn’t care about timelines, arguing that he’d hardly like hearing that answers if doctors told him the same thing. But I mentioned that this reflects Bryant’s attitude that he’s going to worry more about returning once his Achilles tendon fully heals instead of just returning for the sake of it.
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Follow L.A. Daily News Lakers beat writer Mark Medina on Twitter. E-mail him at mark.medina@dailynews.com