Kobe Bryant Once Explained Why He Played Through Injuries: "The Kid That’s Sitting There Might Be The Next Me, Watching Me, Trying To Get Inspiration. I Need To Go Out There And Play."

The NBA is the biggest basketball league in the world. Evidently, reaching it requires a great deal of talent and hard work. But the grind doesn't stop after arriving to the NBA, if anything, that's only the beginning.

The late Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant knew that better than arguably anyone who has ever played in the NBA. The Mamba may have entered the league directly from high school, but it took him a few years to perfect his craft.

He became one of the best players in the league thanks to that work ethic and the ever-so-famous 'Mamba Mentality.' One of the best examples of Kobe's incredible mindset was when he would play through injuries.

Kobe suffered a lot of injuries in his career, but if it wasn't something very serious, he would get right back to playing basketball.

Why Did Kobe Bryant Play Through Injuries?

In the current NBA, load management is pretty common. Almost all the biggest superstars in the league are taking a lot of games off to increase their conditioning and stay fit for the postseason.

But Kobe was rarely seen missing many games, and sometimes he even played through injuries. But why did he do that? Well, the Lakers legend once gave a very simple answer to the question.

“I remember, as a kid, going to games, expecting to see the players play. It never occurred to me at the time that they might be tired or sore. They might be sick. Never occurred to me. I just wanted to see them to do what they do. I think about that. Doesn’t matter if I’m sick. It doesn’t matter if I have a sprained ankle. The kid that’s sitting there might be the next me, watching me, trying to get inspiration. I need to go out there and play.”

These are the things that separate Kobe from the rest. According to him, if winning is important to you, then injuries do not matter.

Kobe was truly one of a kind, and we will probably never see a player like him in the league again for a long time who has such an incredible will to win and be better than everyone around him.