For those that have watched Kobe Bryant for the majority of his NBA career, the 2014-15 season has been one of extreme disappointment. While Bryant has been a high-volume shot guy for as long as he’s been documented, he has also been fairly efficient in doing so (45 percent on field goals for his career).
This year, he’s been brutal, and now Bryant is looking at by far the worst shooting percentage of his career with a pathetic 37.7 percent from the field. There have been nights where he’s been absolutely unable to put the ball in the bucket, let alone score in double-digits, a task that was once child’s play to the NBA’s third all-time leading scorer.
Of course, there are built-in excuses, and for the most part they are reasonable.
Certainly, the mileage on Kobe Bryant’s legs plays a factor. Nailing those dagger jumpers late in the fourth quarter is no easy feat when limited by simply being human. The wear and tear on his body is present, regardless of his legendary work out routines. His age plays into this too; it’s rare to see a guy at 36 doing some of the things that Kobe Bryant can still do in the NBA.
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Then there’s the compounding factor that Bryant is still only 27 games into his comeback from a fracture in his leg. Surely, his recent injury history plays a part in what we see every night from the Black Mamba now. And depending on who you ask, it’s only a matter of time before the ever-competitive Kobe Bryant works his way through it and back into form.
Except that is likely not the case.
Kobe Bryant, after missing a potential game-winning shot against the Oklahoma City Thunder, admitted that his legs come and go, and that he simply did not have them while shooting a miserable 3-for-15 from the floor in the loss. For most people, this would not be a shock, but Bryant typically would not make such a statement.
While this proves that he is indeed a human being, it also proves that we won’t be seeing the old Kobe Bryant, specifically the pre-Achilles tear Bryant that was still near the top of the league offensively.
It’s easy to step back and suggest that he needs to adjust his game. He takes far too many contested jumpers, shots that he has made a career out of, mind you, but shots that currently are not hitting at his old rate. Not even close. The problem is that Bryant seems determined to work his way through his struggles, destined to fail but too headstrong to call it quits.
Kobe Bryant has had three games that surpass his career average in field goal percentage. Three games out of 27. By comparison, Bryant has also amassed four games this season that have seen him register 30 percent or less on his field goal attempts.
As amazing as it is to see Kobe Bryant play well in many areas of the game at his age and with all the mileage on his legs, it’s equally sobering to realize that the Kobe Bryant fans once saw was likely ripped away as he fell victim to a torn Achilles. Bryant has pretty much admitted as much himself, and seems absolutely bent on working his way through the trouble with his body.
Instead of adjustments, expect more of the same from the Lakers legend. Hate it or love it, this is the new Kobe Bryant.