Lakers GM Thinks ‘Impatient’ Kobe Bryant Is On ‘Same Page’ As Team—He’s Not
According to a report by ESPN LA, Lakers star Kobe Bryant, who jettisoned off to Paris with wife Vanessa before the regular season even concluded, is apparently on the same page as the rest of the team. That according to Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, who recently delivered the post-mortem following the conclusion of the worst season since the franchise moved to Los Angeles in 1958.
Kupchak emphasized the word “patience†a lot in his 45-minute news conference, noting that it’s essential when a franchise is rebuilding and adding that Bryant isn’t known for having much of it—if any. He tried his best to paint a positive picture, and understandably so, but it’s become increasingly clear that the two sides aren’t even reading the same book, let alone the same page.
Bryant will be 36 by the time next season starts and is well aware that his career is rapidly winding down. He only played in six games this year, the first time he’s missed very significant playing time in 18 seasons in the NBA. Although Bryant has softened slightly on his rebuilding stance, he’s still emphasizing an unrealistic timeline:
“This organization is just not going to [down]. It’s not going to take a nose dive. But I think we need to accelerate it a little bit for selfish reasons, because I want to win and I want to win next season. So, it’s kind of getting them going now as opposed to two years from now.â€
The only problem is that the Lakers are currently so bad—they finished 30 games worse than the Clippers—making them competitive next season might be an impossible task, even with a draft lottery pick for the first time in years.
After years of trade speculation, it’s hard to imagine Pau Gasol returning under any circumstances as a free agent. And Steve Nash, one of just three players under contract, isn’t worth the paper that contract is printed on, let alone $9.7 million.
Kupchak was clear regarding his thoughts about sacrificing the future for the present:
“We want the same thing. We both want to win as much and as soon as possible. But it takes an organization a long time to get in the position that we’re in where we have options financially going forward for the next year or two or three and we just have to make wise decisions using that space. If you don’t make a wise decision, then you can set yourself back 6-7 years, and we don’t want to do that.”
That puts the organization in a very unfortunate position, because that’s exactly what Bryant, who the Lakers signed to a two-year extension worth $48 million in late 2013, wants. There is absolutely no way to make this team competitive next season without sacrificing down the road—it’s just too depleted.
Which suggests that, despite the nightmare of a season the Lakers just experienced, the worst may actually be yet to come.
It’s no secret that Bryant and coach Mike D’Antoni have, at best, a strained relationship. D’Antoni’s future in Los Angeles is still very much up in the air, but any lingering hope that Phil Jackson would swoop in to save the day completely evaporated when he was hired as the Knicks president in March.
Even if the Lakers decide to dump D’Antoni, there’s no guarantee that Bryant would get on any better with whoever comes in to replace him anyway.
Despite Kupchak’s suggestion to the contrary, right now Bryant and this team are worlds apart. Making it particularly fitting that the Lakers finished their season in San Antonio and Bryant finished his in Paris. This is a bad situation that looks like it’s destined to get a whole lot worse before getting better.
Not that Bryant is letting any of it ruin his vacation—he threw a few bombs and hopped on a transatlantic flight to avoid the fallout. Judging by photos recently posted to Instagram, he and Vanessa seem to be making the most of their anniversary getaway.
Image via Instagram: ladyvb24
Image via Instagram: ladyvb24
Image via Instagram: ladyvb24
Image via Instagram: ladyvb24
Image via Instagram: ladyvb24
Image via Instagram: ladyvb24
Image via Instagram: ladyvb24
