Kobe Bryant: 'Physically, I don't see an end to the tunnel'

Kobe Bryant is 36 years old and coming off two significant injuries. He played in just six games last year, and in them he mostly looked like he'd had his talent sapped by the Monstars. 

But Bryant – whose work ethic is the stuff of legend – has whipped himself back into playing shape and is as confident as one in his position could reasonably be heading into his 19th NBA season. 

"It's a pretty tough injury. I'm not going to lie," Bryant told Marc J. Spears of Yahoo Sports. "There are a lot of things that go through your mind when something like that happens. But I just went on my grind, just kind of chipped away at it day by day. I feel pretty good as a result."

Bryant knows he'll have to retire someday, but he wants it to be on his his own terms, when he feels ready. 

"The biggest key for anybody in retirement is you always want to retire by choice," he said. "Hopefully, I will be fortunate enough to have that option. You don't want to see another catastrophic injury or something like that. When you walk away, you want to feel like you walked away on your terms."

Meanwhile, new Lakers coach Byron Scott is as optimistic as anyone about what Bryant is still capable of, and sees him reclaiming his place among the game's elite in his comeback season. 

"I expect him to play 82 games and play well," Scott said. "… He is a guy that is going to still average 23, 24 points per game. Our biggest thing is making sure he stays healthy and keeping his minutes to a minimum where he can play 82 games.

"I've had a chance to sit and talk to Kobe. I had a chance to see him work out. I had a chance to see him play five-on-five. He's far from retired."

To that last point, Kobe won't say for sure what he plans to do after his  current contract – worth about $48 million over the next two seasons – expires. Lakers assistant coach Mark Madsen claims that "Kobe can play two to four more years," and that this summer he looked just like "the old Kobe."

Bryant is taking a wait-and-see approach, but he certainly doesn't seem to have ruled out the possibility. 

"Whether I do or not, we'll have to see that two years from now," he said. "I don't know, but I could (play longer). Physically, I don't see an end to the tunnel."