During his prolific 17-year NBA career, the Black Mamba has held grudges against some of the biggest superstars in the game—and some of the league’s most inconsequential role players.
After the Atlanta Hawks swingman decided to play defense with the intent to injure on Wednesday evening, it's no surprise Bryant has added him to the long list of players he has a vendetta against.
The Los Angeles Lakers superstar was in the midst of trying to cap off yet another miracle comeback when something went awry. It wasn’t just the baseline jumper that missed with less than three seconds left that was surprising, but rather the way Bryant landed that is of much more concern.
He came down awkwardly on Jones’ extended right foot, immediately crumpling into a heap and grabbing at the area. This reaction was later revealed to be due to a severe left ankle sprain and will keep Bryant sidelined indefinitely, per Sam Amick of USA Today.
While Lakers fans are devastated, Jones should be more concerned with the Mamba’s quotes and Twitter reaction shortly after this alleged dirty play.
In the postgame interview, Bryant disclosed that it’s not his ankle that is bothering him most, but the fact that he’s going to have to wait a year to get his revenge on Jones (as per Yahoo! Sports’ Adrian Wojnarowski).
Bryant obviously wasn’t going to drop the issue, later tweeting out that he strongly felt it was a dangerous play and a foul should have been called on Jones’ underhanded attempt at defense.
Given the fact that these two have a history dating back to 2009, when Jones employed a variety of devious defensive strategies, you can rest assured that Bryant will seek retribution.
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Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
