Why would they build a team around a 38 or 39 yo?(think he's 40 now) That's all PR BS. It was and still is Kobe's team.
I get the desire to bring back showtime but you don't build a team around old man Nash. He was going to be a role player with Kobe still on the team. Nash was supposed to be a pnr partner for Howard. You can't deny the Rockets were running a similar system(3P and pace), but just with a bit slower pace and more passes into Howard. The only reason Howard left LA was Kobe. Jeanie Buss is just doing spin control.
Gasol still is highly respected. And before working with Kobe, Gasol didn't have that great a reputation, coming off a 22 win season with Memphis and being something like 0-12 in playoff games.
Well Flea is. I'm not sure why you went on and on listing players who might have potentially one day played with Kobe, and what they're saying with regard to how well they might have fit or whether they like Kobe or not. The proof is in the pudding refers to players who ACTUALLY played with him. Not just players, but all-star level players. And without fail, ALL of them have left, VOLUNTARILY. This is not a hard concept.
Sarcasm? A soft defensive big man 0-12 in the playoffs was highly respected BEFORE the lakers? he fit that offense like a glove and became highly respected because he went there. his game tapered off quickly towards the end.
Those names were in the article or conveniently left out Some more: CDR, Ariza, Horry, Meeks, Walton, Steve Blake, MWP, all these guys have praised Kobe as a teammate If only all-stars matter, how come the article makes a big deal about Sessions? And most of that article sources players who never played with Kobe Shaq and Bynum were traded, they didn't leave voluntarily. Pau and Dwight left to go to contenders
I think Jeanie, along with those in the LA media defending Kobe all day today, are kind of supporting Henry Abbott's point without knowing it. Remember, the critics quoted by Abbott were not just talking about Kobe personally, but how the whole Lakers environment is around Kobe-- those people enable Kobe and would not hold him accountable for anything while blaming his teammates, even star level teammates like Pau and Dwight who work very hard, and coaches for the Lakers failures. For example, the article talked about how Dwight Howard had no real issue with D'Antoni's offense but resented the fact that Kobe was allowed to not execute the offense but others cannot. Kobe also gets away with not playing defense. In calling those who wouldn't play with Kobe "losers" and threatening to out and fire anyone who dares saying bad things about Kobe, Jeanie Buss confirms how true the allegations about the Lakers' coddling and enabling of Kobe is. It just shows that they will take Kobe's side every time, even when he attacks a star teammate or the coach. The LA media does the same every time they snipe at guys like Dwight for apparently not being tough-minded.
Good points, thanks for pointing this out! The whole LA and Kobe scene is just unreal, it really is like actors in hollywood getting cuddled.
Yeah well Kobe will get his this season and next. If he can even make it through the seasons. Kobe and Rose both tried to come back next year to only have another season ending injury. But then again Grant Hill turned things around.
One of the Laker reporters defending Kobe and knocking the ESPN the Mag story was Kevin Deng who just happened to be the guy who broke the Nash out for season story. Coincidence?
Well that is unfortunate for the Lakers. Nash is out for the season now. His career appears to be done.
Unfortunately, positive (and unconfirmed) praise from 1000 guys still doesn't explain all of the negative feedback that has been well-documented. There isn't some cosmic balance of praise vs criticism that is going to work out in Kobe's favor. Also, your list of guys is funny. Meeks, Blake - too good. I might as well pull out Smush Parker.
lol how is it ownage? His response says everything about how delusional Laker fans (specifically Kobe fans) are. Andrew Bynum became an All-Star because he got playing time and finally got off the injured list for once. Derek Fisher?? He made it to an All-Star game? Kobe didn't make Fisher better; they came into the league at the same time for crying out loud. lol. Odom? Kobe made him better too? His highest career PER was his last year in Miami before he was traded to the Lakers. The triangle offense was what took Odom's abilities to another level. If you can't see/accept that then I really don't have anymore to say. As far as Kwame lol wow...I made an analogy of Randle's rookie year to Kwame's rookie year. Trying to make a meaningless point that Kwame didn't play with Kobe is not only avoiding your baseless argument but also proving that you didn't comprehend what I was posting. But yes, keep on grabbing noteworthy quotes from THE Darius Morris. Pau Gasol: "One part of me wanted to stick with him and try to turn it around. But deep inside of me, I felt it was time after everything that I’d been through that I wanted to put myself in a position where I was highly stimulated." LINK Does that sound like a Kobe Bryant that could get his teammates stimulated to stick around? Andrew Bynum: "I thought [playing with Kobe] really helped me a lot obviously at first, because he draws so much attention it's hard for guys to double team and key on you, so it helped me tremendously. Later, I felt I was able to get the ball more and do more things with the ball, so I could definitely see how it could stunt growth." LINK Does that sound like a guy that could have kept developing into an elite player under Kobe? Derek Fisher: "“What continues to separate Kevin [Durant] from so many other young guys before him and probably those that will come after him, is that he’s a phenomenal person. He really cares about the success of others around him and I think that is what will always make the conversation about how great he was, once he’s done, very fun to have because whatever success he has his teammates will have it with him and that’s what he’s always wanted" Does that sound like a guy that thinks Kobe actually cares about making his teammates better?
