Bryant's widow gives touching reason NBA great was a cut above current stars

05 February 2023 , 12:54

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NBA legend Kobe Bryant and his wife Vanessa (Image: GETTY)

Load management is commonplace in the NBA, with teams resting their top stars during the regular season to ensure they remain fully fit for more crucial games.

The practice has proved controversial at times, and the late Kobe Bryant was not a fan, branding it "crazy" in a 2019 interview. Throughout his career Bryant played through several injuries and, following his tragic death in a helicopter crash in 2020, his widow Vanessa revealed Bryant did so to ensure he did not "disappoint his fans".

"Kobe played through injury after injury," she said in a speech at Bryant's posthumous Hall of Fame induction. "To name a few, he had IVs administered during half-times to play with food poisoning and the flu. He played with a broken nose. He had a broken finger and had it snap back in place, just enough to finish the game.

"He also taught himself how to use his left hand to play the rest of the season while his finger healed. He even switched to free throws, with a torn Achilles and walked off the court, on his own."

Vanessa added that despite his injuries, Bryant continued to play on because he remembered how much he enjoyed watching his favourite NBA stars play when he was younger and did not want to deny his fans the same experience.

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"People don't know this, but one of the reasons my husband played through injuries and pain was because he said I remember being a little kid sitting in the nosebleeds with his dad to watch my favourite player play," she added.

Vanessa Bryant revealed why Kobe played through injury during his career while speaking at his Hall of Fame induction (Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

"He could recall the car ride, the convos and the excitement of being lucky enough to have a seat in the arena. Kobe didn't want to disappoint his fans, especially the ones in the 300 sections that saved up to watch him play.

"The kids with the same excitement he once had. I remember asking him why he couldn't just sit a game out because he was hurting. He said, 'What about the fans that saved up to watch me play just once?'

"He never forgot about his fans. If he could help it, he would play every minute of every game. He loves you all so much."

Matthew Cooper