Derick E. Hingle/USA TODAY Sports/Reuters
Basketball icon and Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant announced Sunday he will retire from the game at the end of the NBA season. Bryant broke the news that he would end his 20-year career in a letter posted to the Players Tribune website. The 37-year-old wrote that basketball “gave a 6-year-old boy his Laker dream and I’ll always love you for it.” Bryant is struggling with the worst season of his career and has been plagued by injuries in each of the last five seasons. “But I can’t love you obsessively for much longer,” he continued. “This season is all I have left to give. My heart can take the pounding. My mind can handle the grind but my body knows it’s time to say goodbye. And that’s OK. I’m ready to let you go.” Following his announcement, Bryant scored 13 points versus the Indiana Pacers, but the Lakers lost 107-103, putting his last-place team at 2-14 in the standings.