The NBA All-Star game is approaching on Sunday Feb. 16, but Kobe Bryant doesn't want your vote. The 15-time NBA All-Star who has been showcased in 14 straight East vs. West games is currently rehabbing a fractured right leg and even though he should be back by the time the game is played in New Orleans, he said he'd much rather see the young players get the spotlight.
"Even though there's so much respect that comes from me to be able to play for the fans, I'd much rather see the young guys go out there and play in the game," Bryant told CBS Sports before the Lakers lost 137-115 Sunday night against the Denver Nuggets. "They've obviously put the work in to be there that weekend, so I'd much rather see them go in there and participate."
Bryant is aiming for a late-January return but may not even be able to play in the All-Star game anyway as it could take him a while to return to form. Bryant doesn't think the fans should vote him in and wouldn't say whether or not he deserved the honor.
"That's obviously a sensitive topic for me personally, because you want to feel like you deserve to be in the game and play," Bryant said via CBS Sports. "But then there's the other side of the argument where you've put in a lot of work over the years, and [if] fans vote you in, you want to go out there and show your appreciation and respect to them."
He added: "I think it's always a delicate balance, but from where I come from, I really enjoy watching what the young guys are doing and how they're performing."
Bryant made his season debut on Dec. 8 after a torn Achilles tendon sidelined him for eight months, and he played six games in 10 days before getting injured again in a game against the Memphis Grizzlies. He offered the types of players he would want fans to vote for instead of himself.
"I probably won't be able to come back [to the Lakers] soon enough to be able to make my stamp or be able to make my mark on a game," Bryant said per CBS Sports. "So my advice would be to focus on younger players, the Damian Lillards of the world, because they're more than deserving to be out there and playing that weekend."
It looks like the 2014 All-Star game will not feature "The Black Mamba" for the first time since 1999, no matter how the fans vote.
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