LOL! I am telling you, as much as it might hurt us if Artest moves west and to a conference rival like the Lakers, I am soooooo rooting for Artest to play in LA, because one of those verbal assaults by Kobe will turn into a Pay-Per-View all-out wrestling match...my money is on Artest, he will probably bite Kobe's ears.
Of course, one should keep in mind that Kobe is somewhat responsible for that situation. He drove away Shaq and he is making Odom's life miserable. Seldom do I hear people say "I want to play with Kobe, trade me to the Lakers!" The only reason the Lakers have any shot at getting free agents is the fact that a lot of players are also wannabe actors/rappers.
As a Pacer fan and anti-Laker fan, I wish so much those teams would swap Odom and Artest. Odom would be a good fit in Indy and Kobe and Ron Ron having to put up with each other would be justice.
"trendy to hate Kobe" Christ.....Laker fans/Kobe apologists kill me. Kobe's hated because he embodies narcissism and is the ultimate personification of every guy on a pick up court that makes playing miserable for everyone else. Aside from the clear difference in buying into a team concept (Kobe notorious for being aloof his entire career and having acrimonious relationships with teammates, versus no bad blood between Iverson and any Sixer since maybe the Stackhouse days), can anyone honestly argue that Iverson wouldn't get more out of this Laker roster than Bryant? I would do that trade in a second if I wanted to win right now. Consider: Assists/shot: AI 0.27, Kobe 0.17 PPS (scoring efficiency): AI 1.30, Kobe 1.24 A/T: AI 2.4, Kobe 1.5 % of team shots: AI 31.9%, Kobe 32.6% I'm thoroughly convinced that Phil Jackson is purposefully allowing Kobe to run amock this season, perhaps as it may be the only way to show Kobe his way doesn't work or to convince the Lakers brass to trade him for a coachable star. Evan
You can trade Kobe when you become Lakers GM. While he's "the man" the Lakers are 7th. If you picked them to place better than 9th, then give yourself a pat on the back.
Hahahahah! Before I want to reply to your pathetic Kobe apology, it already got brutally trashed by some of the people here that have some common sense. Yep, nice try for the fake "I'm not a Kobe fan" stuff, as if it will make your statement more valid. "I am not a fan, and I don't even like the guy, so what I will say about him must be true..." Yeah right. There are many argument I've read over the years, and this one is close to one of the most stupid I've ever read. So, if I hate Hitler, I shouldn't say anything about what he did because "WHO THE HECK AM I EXPECTING HIM (Hitler) TO BE?" If I hate communism, I shouldn't say anything because "WHO THE HECK AM I EXPECTING THEM(commies) TO BE?" If I hate stupid arguments, I shouldn't say anything about you because "WHO THE HECK AM I EXPECTING YOU TO WRITE?" I have no problem with you being a Lakers/Kobe fan though, but please don't pretend you are not, because it's a very cheap attempt to make your argument sound more valid. BTW, if you are a Kobe fan, that's OK. There are Hitler admirers, Al Capone admirers and Ron Artest admirers out there too. You Kobe lovers aren't unique. But if you are a true Lakers fan, wake up and see the truth. Kobe's superstar basketball player, but a true assclown and is now hurting your team alot more than he's helping.
I guess you can play addition by subtraction and get a group of role players around Kobe, then subsequently bring in a Webber.... AI has coach issues as well, but he's angelic compared to Kobe unless we're in a topic dogging on AI. Both teams have the same winning percentage at the time of this post. That might be true. I'm convinced Phil sold out PLUS he wanted to get the upper hand on Kobe by proving to him that his system works; they're both egomaniacs. Yet the Lakers can only win if Kobe buys into the system. It'll be a dramatic year even without Artest to crash the party.
You hate the guy but you can't consistently explain why or what he could do better. I hated Jordan, but he won a lot...and I'm not comparing Kobe with Jordan. That's what the stupid question is asking.
It's true, but maybe you need to also blame Kobe for being out of control. I think that has something to do with it.
Kobe is out of control, but they way you guys revel in it is disgusting. My take is and has always been, even though Kobe may be out of control and even though all the players around him suck, he is still a bad@ss basketball player & one of the best i've ever seen.
Consider it like this: it's a "you asked for it" situation. Along the lines of "you made your bed now sleep in it", only more like "Kobe crapped his bed and now he gets to sleep in it." No one likes jack-ass, me-first stars like Kobe unless he's on your team and producing wins. He gets a free pass from most Laker fans because of the recent rings, but plenty are starting to re-think that. I have no pity for Boo$er being out for nearly a year with injuries, seeing as he's bought his multi-million dollar LA mansion off of shamlessly stabbing Cleveland and Gund in the back. I'm not sure if I believe in karma, but it sure feels good when it takes place. Therapist #8 blew up a championship squad out of ego, jealousy, and an overriding need to succeed without others. Not even Chamberlin, Wilkins, or Baylor was this flagrantly me-first. So yeah. I'm going to enjoy watching him light his own career on fire. Be honest; how do you think he's going down in history? What are we all going to remember about him 20 years from now? Evan
ESPNRadio's Dan Davis just reported that Kobe Bryant is expected to be suspended later this afternoon, as a result of his elbowing Mike Miller in the MEM/LAL game on Wednesday.
Nah. PJ cannot control Kobe if he wanted to. He has no choice but to let him go out of control. But your point is well taken. PJ is smart enough to know that Kobe's going out of control will hurt both the team and Kobe's image. The result would be PJ finally getting the upper hand in their relationship, both on the Lakers team and within the whole organization.
Kobe’s frustration with teammates grows/Kobe suspended 2 games http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10651006/ Kobe’s frustration with teammates grows Bryant, Odom reportedly in near brawl after recent loss Lakers guard Kobe Bryant has shown a new nastiness this season, including scuffling with teammate Lamar Odom. Douglas C. Pizac / AP NBCSports.com news services Updated: 11:43 a.m. ET Dec. 30, 2005 Kobe Bryant may be remaking his image off the court, but the Los Angeles Lakers guard reportedly is showing more of a nasty side on the court. And a lot of the nastiness is directed at his teammates. The New York Post said people sitting near L.A.'s bench for the Rockets and Wizards games were flabbergasted at the things he screamed at his teammates. The Post also reported Friday more about a major confrontation between Bryant and teammate Lamar Odom after the Lakers’ loss at Washington. The confrontation reportedly led to smashing of lights and damaging of a TV monitor belonging to the Lakers' flagship station in front of the visitors’ locker room. Bryant was angry at Odom for supposedly botching a pick-and-roll that was to set up a three-point shot for Bryant that could have tied the game, the Post said. The newspaper said as the pair got closer to the Lakers' dressing room, Bryant was yelling at Odom. Odom yelled back and that's when Bryant reportedly went after Odom. In doing so, The Post said Bryant kicked over the lights and a chair holding the TV monitor. The newspaper said Bryant’s security force of two quickly intervened and separated the pair. The Post said they again exchanged heated words and challenges in the locker room and that the tension was so intense one of the security guys accompanied Odom to the back of the charter bus and sat nearby on the trip to the airport while the other sat in the front with Kobe, the last member of the Lakers to board. During Wednesday’s overtime loss to Memphis in Los Angeles, Bryant also was angry and even threw an elbow at Grizzlies guard Mike Miller. Bryant said he thinks opponents are finding things too easy when they come to Los Angeles these days. The victory was only the Grizzlies’ second in the 20 games they’ve played on the Lakers’ court — and was more proof for Bryant that his team isn’t tough enough at home. “This being our home court, people come here and think it’s Hollywood and all sorts of stuff, so they think they’ll come down (the lane) and look pretty and shoot jump shots and dunk the ball and finger-roll the ball and do all sorts of cute stuff,” Bryant said. “And we’ve got to stop that.” Slide show: The Week in Sports Pictures Bryant did his part when he elbowed Miller in the face and picked up a flagrant foul with 8:24 left in regulation. Earlier in the game, Bryant needed three stitches to close a cut over his left eye after Miller pushed him in the face with his hand while driving. “Any player that was going to come down the lane at that point in time, I was going to let him know that he just can’t walk through there,” Bryant said. “I think we as a team have to do a better job of establishing that. And me, as a leader of the ballclub, I’ve got to take the initiative to do that — and hopefully, everybody will see that.” © 2005 NBC Sports.com
I agree that Jackson is buying his time, hoping that the organization will finally get rid of Kobe. Say what you want about Kobe, I am sure if he is on the block, teams will call. I mean, if there are 20 teams (according to some source) interested in Artest, Kobe is 10 times more attractive than Artest. Phil Jackson's hope is that he will land another superstar, maybe not as talented as Kobe, but a lot more coachable.
I could see a Kobe for KG trade going down. KG gets away from the Wolves who will never surround him with enough talent to suceed and Kobe gets to be the man for his team.
This could really just go in the pre-exisiting Kobe thread that's at the top of the forum. All the content in your article is already in that thread.
