[latimes]Lakers could shut down Kobe Bryant before end of season

I'd like to see the league fine the Lakers for tanking if they shut him down. He's healthy-ish, just old, and supposedly a starter and their star. Shutting him down after all hopes of the playoffs have gone looks like blatant tanking for draft position. Not the sort of tanking Philly does where the GM signs a bunch of green rookies but the kind where the coach doesn't try his best to win the games he's in. If Kobe's injured, that's fine, you can put him on the IR. If he sucks or is just too old to be effective, that's fine, bench him. But to say that he's healthy and valuable and you just don't want to risk him in games you don't want to win so that you can use him next season for games you do want to win -- that's tanking.

I don't think they're doing their image any favors. They look handcuffed by a guy who has outlived his usefulness despite the fact he has driven away multiple cornerstone players and plunged them to the bottom of the western conference with no hope in sight.

It has a corrollary in the business world. People may feel insecure working for a company that fires people all the time, but it's a morale killer to have coworkers who don't get fired even though they don't pull their weight. Companies that can cull their herd get reputations as high-performance organizations and high performing talent will want to work there. You can't keep around people who are bringing their organization down and diminishing the opportunity for success of their peers. And Kobe's been doing that for a while now. As much as the Lakers may want to show respect to one of the all-time greats, they shouldn't sacrifice the franchise for it. Push him into retirement and then throw a big parade and be done with it.

 

This season, the Lakers have been far worse with Kobe on the court than they have been with Kobe off the court. Playing Kobe is the true act of tanking by the Lakers.

 

The Lakers should have just given Kobe a 60M retirement package and be done.