Kobe Bryant’s Impending Battle with an Undefeated Opponent

The perils of time provide basketball players with an unbeatable opponent.

No matter how talented the player, unless his trainer has access to an elixir from the fountain of youth, that player will eventually be forced to submit to the fact that he can’t run, jump, and cut as quickly as he once could, that the knots in his body take twice as long to unwind, and that the wear and tear of being a professional athlete does wear away joints and does tear away cartilage.

All the NBA greats succumb to Father Time in the end—the only question is, when?

Some players age gracefully, countering their diminishing skill set with years of wisdom.

Other players simply drop off the map.

For the most part, players who take care of t...

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