Mamba progressing well and is potentially day-to-day.
Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant has conceded that it is unlikely that he will return on Friday to face the Sacramento Kings.
The 35-year-old has seemingly recovered from his ruptured Achilles that he sustained at the end of last season, but is still short of full fitness as he eyes a return to competitive action.
The 18-year veteran has had two consecutive days of practice, and while he is eyeing a third to further improve his conditioning and movement, he is not yet ruled out of featuring against the Toronto Raptors on Sunday.
“It feels that way,” Bryant said, according to ESPN.
“It feels pretty good. This is the second day now that I’ve been able to get out there and move around and play and play pretty well, and it felt like I could do anything that I wanted to do out there on the floor, so we progress to [Thursday]. On to tomorrow. Let’s see if I can go three days straight and then have another hard workout on Friday and kind of measure it accordingly.”
Bryant produced a great deal of excitement after apparently dunking during practice on Tuesday but he preferred to describe the move as a “strong lay-up”.
Nevertheless, while he insists that the Achilles is feeling strong, Bryant is keen to continue his work in the gym and come back at full speed as opposed to easing his way back into a game scenario.
However, he also admitted that there is still work to be done in order to be fully comfortable with dunking off his left leg but appeared to be in high spirits as he moves closer to a return to action on the court.
The Lakers are 9-9 for the season thus far, but coach Mike D’Antoni will be hoping to welcome back both Bryant and Steve Nash to the fold in the upcoming days as both veterans continue to practice with their team-mates.
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