okay, if i was the franchise, this is what i would do... 1) Run mad damage control, whether it is a press conference or interviews with the media, hoping to appease Kobe .. an 'im sorry' of sorts 2) DONT trade Kobe. He has 2 years left, meaning we can play him another year and not risk losing him for nothing. Hold him hostage, make him stay against his will, while at the same time trying to appease him by building a team that can compete. Perhaps time will heal and he will change his mind 3) Get Jerry West to talk kobe out of his current mindset. 4) DONT trade Kobe! We wont get equal value, and we dont need to YET ... we can do that next year if things dont get better
This is beyond repair. If the Lakers wanted to do something about it, they should have done it the minute all this trade talk came out. Just being silent is not helping, and it just adds to the credibility to the things that the Lakers management has allegedly done. If they truly did not do it, then they should have at least talked to Kobe immediately (although, denying what has been said probably wouldn't be very credible either). Kobe simply must (and will) be traded now, just because we are beyond the point of no return.
There's no way they will trade him, same reason as KG they can't recieve the same value in return and who else do they have on the team.
The "equal value" thing is stupid. Kobe will continue to be disgruntled as long as the Lakers are a mediocre team. Dude, If I was used to winning championships and building dynasties and had to settle for Smush Parker or Chucky Atkins as my starting point guard a year after making the Finals, I would be pissed too. Especially if the management lies in the process.
Kobe is a disgruntled superstar. When do those ever workout? This organization hasn't given him or Phil the respect they deserve. I think it's more than just their failure to build a contending team that has upset Kobe, it's the trust issue that is shattered. I don't see that being fixed any time soon. If the Lakers are really committed to buildind for the future, they should trade Kobe as soon as he cools off. They can get great young talent for him to put around their "future" in Bynum.
Anyone want to bet that Bynum will be no more then a serviceable big man or a semi-star (ala Jermaine O'Neal) at best? He's hardly a franchise player, I don't care what his age is. I saw Tracy Mcgrady in his early days as a Raptor; I didn't think much of him as a rookie, but I was impressed by him in his second year, I thought that he was going to be really good someday. Ditto for Kobe. I started watching basketball seriously during his rookie year. I didn't year much about him then but I was thoroughly impressed with him by his 2nd year, and after his perfomance against Jordan in the All-Star game, I knew he was going to be something special. With some players, you can see it. With others, you can't. I don't see it in Bynum. As much as the Lakers would like thier fans to believe that Bynum is a rare breed, I would take players like Brandon Roy and Andrea Bargnani over him anytime, any day.
<div class="quote_poster">kobe4life Wrote</div><div class="quote_post">If I was Jerrry Buss, I'll sell this franchise to Bill Gate and let him run the show.</div> There is a clause where if Jerry Buss sells the Lakers, he would have to sell it to the (hockey) Kings owner, who has a share of the Lakers ownership as well
Obviously their first option should be to calm Kobe down. It's almost indisputable: currently, Kobe is the best basketball player in the world. The Lakers should be solely comitted to winning <u>now</u> though. If it means trading their coveted Andrew Bynum, so be it.
