What Offensive System Should Lakers Use in Kobe’s Twilight Years?

Los Angeles Lakers fans are hoping to see Kobe Bryant back in uniform for the start of next season after an agonizingly long layoff. No one knows how two major injuries—a ruptured Achilles tendon and a fractured knee—might affect his style of play.

We do know, however, that Bryant has certain old-school preferences.

In an ESPN LA article by Dave McMenamin in January, the veteran shooting guard bemoaned the fast-paced finesse game that’s now in vogue, admitting that Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni is at least partially responsible for the league-wide shift:

“It’s more small ball which, personally, I don’t really care much for. I like kind of smash-mouth, old-school basketball because that’s what I grew up watching.”

During his recent end-of-season exit interview, D’Antoni himself spoke about the evolution of the game, per Lakers.com:

I do think the game is changing and it has changed. Some of the hard part of coaching is trying to drag people over to the next side. People are comfortable with doing business a certain way… It doesn’t mean there’s no place for a post-up player or the mid-range game. It’s just not what is dominant today and will be.

While D’Antoni’s future with the team seems less than certain, his comments seemed to find resonance with Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak, also per Lakers.com:

I don’t think there’s any doubt it’s changed. The rules today promote that style of play… The idea of a two-point shot doesn’t even come up in a conversation with some coaches. That’s just the way it is today. Will it be that way 10-15 years from now? I don’t know. It is entertaining, it’s fun to watch and players love to play that way. I think it’s here to stay.

There’s no lack of variables heading into the summer. A roster needs to be built from the charred ashes of a lost season, a coaching decision needs to be made and we don’t know what Bryant will look like from a physical point of view as he heads into his twilight years.

If D’Antoni stays, will he find some middle ground with the aging superstar or will he stick to his purist small-ball ways? If a coaching change is made, will Bryant be catered to through a post-driven system or has that ship sailed?

Bleacher Report reached out to Darius Soriano who runs Forum Blue & Gold—the Lakers team page for ESPN’s TrueHoop network. Soriano believes Bryant will be able to operate in most any offense, finding his stride as a scorer, but that he’ll be most effective as a post player and even more specifically, operating 18 feet and in, especially when isolating:

His pet spots will probably still be the elbows and the shallow wing where he can work his triple threat game and use his jab-step to free up space to shoot his mid-range jumper. Off that shot, he can then force defenders to crowd him and, with his footwork, still be able to get a step on his man to get into the lane. His ability to finish inside and draw fouls are what will be an open question, though. Does he have the lift? Will he have the strength? My guess is he’ll have enough, but it remains to be seen.

As for systems, I don’t think one exists that would really put him in these positions consistently. It will be more about the types of plays a team runs to get him to these spots. I imagine we’d see lots of screen actions and HORNS sets that position him on the weak side to start a set or already plant him at the elbow, would be best for him at this stage.

We’ve seen all types of Mamba over the course of 18 seasons from the ball-happy gunner to more of a system player under Phil Jackson. This past season, he was even asked to run the point. It was far from ideal for someone coming off Achilles surgery but there weren’t a lot of alternatives, given that Steve Nash, Steve Blake and Jordan Farmar were all injured and watching from the bench.

That experiment lasted just six games before Bryant went down with a fracture of the lateral tibial plateau—the bump where the top of the shin meets the knee. As it turned out, it was the last game of his 2013-14 campaign and symbolic of one of the strangest seasons ever for the Purple and Gold.

If the coaching system remains as is, what should we be watching for? Soriano points to Bryant’s well-known love of having the rock in his hands, while hoping he doesn’t have to expend too much energy early in the clock:

An interesting thing to watch will be how much he’s asked to handle the ball to start a play. In the past, he’d start a lot of possessions with the ball in his hands and either run a P&R or simply dribble into a preferred spot on the floor where he could go to work. In a less structured style of play—like MDA’s “ball finds energy” type of offense, he’d have the freedom to do stuff like this and it wouldn’t be an issue.

If D’Antoni stays on, I’d imagine these same freedoms will exist and they’ll meet in the middle somewhere so that Kobe can operate with the ball in his hands to start sets while also working off it enough so he’s not expending so much energy being the creator of offense for the entire team so often.

After all the wear and tear, after more than 54,000 minutes of basketball not counting international play and All-Star games, after all the surgeries and grueling practices and obsessive workouts, how much more can a body take? Bryant will have had a nice long rest when he finally suits up again, but he’ll also be 36 years old.

As we all know, of course, there’s no putting Bryant back in the bottle once he’s on the court and feeling it, or, if he feels that his teammates aren’t doing enough. And therein lies another unknown—the Lakers ended the season with eight unrestricted free agents on the roster, as well as Nick Young who is expected to opt out of the second year of his minimum-salary contract.

One saving grace is the team’s top-10 pick in the upcoming draft. How will that plus the summer free-agency market affect how Bryant is used next season? Soriano says a lot will depend on who those teammates are:

A ball dominant guard or wing flanking him will put him off the ball more, regardless. If that player is a shot creator, Kobe can still work as a spot up shooter or find his way to the post on ball reversals. Ideally, I’d like to see him work more this way than as a ball handler above the arc where his teammates are flattened out and he has everyone in front of him. Kobe works best from the wing with the floor tilted towards him where shooters are spotted up diagonally and where cutters can slash behind defenders who are ball watching.

My hope would be whoever coaches the team next year recognizes these things and works with him to put him in these positions as often as possible rather than always asking him to handle the ball up high where he can be turnover prone.

Bryant is heading into his 19th season and the league has changed considerably during his long tenure. The three-pointer reigns supreme now, plus of course, highlight dunks. Analytics junkies have increasingly suggested that long two-point shots are bad and threes are good. The reason is simple—the extra point more than outweighs the decreased shooting percentage.

In other words, inefficiency has become efficient—and a whole lot splashier on TV.

Bryant doesn’t have a problem jacking them up from distance but would prefer to operate from the elbow and why not—he’s got five rings that proves he knows something about the game of basketball.

That game, however, is changing. This Sisyphean hero will once again push his boulder up the hill next season and we don’t yet know who will be surrounding him, guiding him or challenging him. A fresh new face in the coaching ranks could appear, or it may be a case of trying once again to wedge Bryant’s defiant square peg into D’Antoni’s round hole.

Or perhaps, the unlikeliest case of all—the arrival of some old-school smash-mouth coach who still believes in the inside-out rule of law.

Regardless, an uncompromising warrior will again be part of the NBA next season and we’ll watch and follow along. And if the Lakers’ offensive system fits Bryant’s twilight years, that’s great. And if it doesn’t, he’ll simply demand the ball and do a little pump-faking and jab-stepping and find a way to put the biscuit in the bucket, regardless of range.

And glower all the way back up the court.

It will be good to have Kobe back.

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Showtime Set to Profile Lakers Star Kobe Bryant in Documentary This Fall

Before the final curtain falls on Kobe Bryant‘s basketball career, fans will get a rare treat in the form of a Showtime documentary called Kobe Bryant’s Muse profiling one of the greatest Lakers to don purple and gold.

In a press release, Showtime announced that it plans to release the documentary at some point this fall, coinciding with Bryant’s hopefully healthy return to the Los Angeles Lakers.

The feature is directed by Gotham Chopra, whose directing credits include Decoding Deepak (2012) and the ESPN 30 for 30 film The Little Master (2014).

Chopra states the project was an unlikely one considering his sports loyalties. “As a lifelong Boston Celtics fan, never did I imagine I would collaborate with Laker great Kobe Bryant,” he said.

Chopra was ecstatic about the chance to profile the Lakers legend. “Kobe’s quest for greatness transcends rivalries and I’m excited by his and Showtime’s willingness to go down this rabbit hole together. I’m confident audiences will be intrigued by what comes out the other side,” he said.

ESPN.com’s Ramona Shelburne notes that Bryant isn’t exactly one to jump at the chance to welcome film crews and producers into his personal space:

In the past, Bryant has resisted projects that demand an all-access look into his life, choosing to keep the methods behind his success mysterious. But with his career threatened by an Achilles injury last spring, and the knowledge that his time in the NBA is coming to an end within a few years, he changed his mind.

Bryant, however, did allow renowned filmmaker Spike Lee to chronicle his life over the course of a game day back in 2009 in the documentary Kobe Doin‘ Work.

From the looks of it, the Showtime documentary will be a far more exhaustive look at Bryant’s life and his preparations as one of the sport’s best players.

Executive Vice President and General Manager of Showtime Sports, Stephen Espinoza, had this to say: “Kobe Bryant’s Muse will offer viewers a deep character portrait of a professional athlete who has transcended his sport to become a culture-moving personality.”

“We are thrilled that Kobe has given us this unprecedented access, which will allow our viewers to witness such a challenging period of time in the life of one of the NBA’s greatest players,” he continued.

According to the release, the documentary will be executive produced by Bryant and Chopra in tandem with Mamba Media and cover “Bryant’s storied basketball career, detailing his mentorships, allies and rivalries that have helped shape his 18-year tenure in the NBA.”

As the Los Angeles Times’ Patrick Kevin Day reminds us, Bryant is under contract with the Lakers for $48.5 million over the next two seasons. He is coming off one of the more frustrating campaigns of his career, playing in just six games thanks to injury and, as reported by the LA Times, departing early for vacation.

He also posted this pointed tweet before leaving:

As Shelburne notes, welcoming such a production isn’t exactly shocking considering Bryant’s recent revelation that the end of his career is near and various projects outside basketball are necessary for a man who works so tirelessly at his craft.

Shelburne points to a March interview between Bryant and ESPN’s Darren Rovell covering the Lakers star’s budding business ventures.

Bryant had this to say about the prospect of life after basketball:

I have always had ideas and always had a vision of where I wanted to go going back to 2000, but they are just ideas. Now, once the Achilles injury took place, I’m sitting at home for months not moving, a couple things set in. One is that there is only so many Modern Family episodes a person can watch. And then two, what do I do now?

If one were so bold, the answer might be that Bryant is now apter to stretch the empire and welcome projects outside his comfort zone.

Don’t think for a second this means anything different for Bryant the player, because fans should expect the 35-year-old to work extremely hard to make next season the polar opposite of the one that just concluded.

As for the documentary, we’ll put on our soothsayer hat and predict a hit. Despite playing in a handful of games, ESPN.com indicates that Bryant’s jersey still ranked in the top five of sales for the year.

Fans gravitate toward the Mamba.

It’s that fact that makes a rare look into his life so compelling. When you couple that with the popularity of similar documentaries found in the likes of the 30 for 30 series, you have all the components for a memorable feature for fans of all basketball loyalties.

A healthy Bryant has long been a safe bet on the basketball court, but a similar sentiment is welcome in capturing all things Bryant behind the scenes.

 

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LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Kobe Bryant Top List of NBA Jersey Sales

You likely already know it, judging by the ubiquity of his jersey in NBA arenas, but we might as well inform you that LeBron James holds the top spot in NBA jersey sales at the close of the season. 

ESPN’s Darren Rovell reports that James’ jersey is again the most sought-after by fans, as it was purchased more than any other player’s this season. 

Rovell includes a list of the top 15, but the five best-selling jerseys are listed below: 

1. LeBron James
2. Kevin Durant
3. Kobe Bryant
4. Derrick Rose 
5. Stephen Curry

The rest of the top 10 is rounded out by Carmelo Anthony, Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul, Kyrie Irving and James Harden. 

As for you fans spending your hard-earned money on James swag, you have humbled your King. Here is what he had to say, via Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press: 

Rovell does provide some interesting tidbits for those of you wondering what the best-selling teams were this season: “Thanks in part to James, who has finished with the top-selling jersey in six of his 11 seasons in the league, the Heat are the best-selling team. The Lakers, Knicks and Celtics finished second, fifth and sixth in merchandise sales, respectively, despite all missing the playoffs.”

Now, there are a few interesting items to note on the season’s collection of best-sellers. As Rovell notes, Durant enjoys the highest placement of his career, finishing just shy of the top spot. 

It makes sense when you consider that the already prolific scorer destroyed the opposition this season to the tune of 32 points per game—a career high.

The other obvious point is that fans haven’t let pesky issues such as season-ending injuries hinder their need to own a Kobe Bryant or Derrick Rose jersey. 

Bryant played six games this season and largely sulked the rest of the time, leaving the team early to embark on a family vacation this past week. 

Rose, as noted by the Chicago Tribune’s K.C. Johnson, has played in just 50 games over the last three seasons. 

You might say that some players have already done enough to motivate fans to buy their jerseys. In some respects, success on the court has become superfluous for jersey sales. 

When you consider that the Lakers, the Knicks and the Celtics—teams suffering seasons that range from lackluster to horrendous—finished in the top six of team sales, you have evidence that popularity is largely ingrained. 

With that, we surmise the list will look remarkably similar next season, with a few new names peppered in amid the usual suspects. 

NBA fans know what they like, and silly things such as injuries and mounting losses will not deter them from boasting their loyalty to the tune of an expensive jersey. 

 

Hit me up on Twitter: Follow @gabezal.

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Rich Dad Poor Dad

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Bleach

Bleach is a great manga. Non-stop action, it will keep entertain  forever. It shows so much creativity,and hard work. It deserves to be at the top of the ranks of manga. it rival is Naruto. I feel they are both equal. Also  it has  great comedic and dialogue. Too bad this is its last arc 😦 . I never thought it would end. It is too good to end.

Report: Kobe Bryant Goes to France as Los Angeles Lakers Finish Season

The Los Angeles Lakers will conclude a campaign to forget on Wednesday night when they take on the San Antonio Spurs in the regular-season finale. But it appears that franchise cornerstone Kobe Bryant won’t even wait that long to strike 2013-14 from his memory.

According to the Los Angeles Times‘ Mike Bresnahan, Bryant left with his family for a vacation in France either on Tuesday or Wednesday.

The legendary shooting guard left his fans with a final requiem for the Lakers’ season via his official Twitter:

Believe it or not, the 2013-14 season once held a bit of promise for Bryant and the Lakers. His teammates overachieved in the first few weeks as Bryant recovered from surgery to repair a ruptured Achilles, posting a 10-9 record in the tough Western Conference. 

Bryant returned to much fanfare on Dec. 8 against the Toronto Raptors. His team was still very much in the playoff race at the time.

But it was not to be. Bryant played in only six games before suffering left tibial plateau fracture in a Dec. 17 win against the Memphis Grizzlies.

That injury was the last straw for the Lakers, who lost 12 of their next 14 games and plummeted in the Western Conference standings. The 2013-14 club has already suffered more defeats than any other team in the history of this proud franchise.

Though he hasn’t played a game in months, the losing has clearly worn on Bryant, per Bresnahan:

Bryant has been in a surly mood since the team’s fortunes started sagging, muttering under his breath at last month’s team photo that he doesn’t like associating with a team so many games under .500.

For what it’s worth, Bryant isn’t the only person who is already fed up with watching the Lakers. The team’s ratings have taken a spectacular tumble over the course of the season, per the Los Angeles Times‘ Joe Flint:

According to Nielsen, Lakers games have averaged a 2.15 household rating on Time Warner Cable’s SportsNet this season. That translates to 122,000 households and is a 54% drop from the previous season and is believed to be a new low for the franchise. The team’s season ends tonight in San Antonio against the Spurs.

The previous low for Lakers games was a 2.71 rating for the 2004-05 season, when the team was on Fox Sports West. 

Not surprisingly, 2004-05 was the last time the Lakers failed to make the postseason.

The Lakers front office has a crucial summer ahead of it. It must not only acquire talent—through the draft, trades or free agency—to placate its star, but to repair the damage that has been done to the Lakers brand during this lost season.

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Kobe Bryant Calls This Season ‘Sh*t,’ Says Next Year Will Be ‘Epic’

Kobe Bryant, blunt as ever, is ready to move on.

The Los Angeles Lakers will not participate in the postseason for just the third time in three decades, Bryant logged just six games in an utterly lost season and on most nights, the roster featured names you’d expect to see on a middle-of-the-pack D-League team.

So, if Bryant wants to send all thoughts of the 2013-14 campaign swirling into the figurative porcelain abyss, it’s hard to blame him—even if a thorough scrubbing at a water treatment plant still might not be enough to wash the stink off such a foul-smelling season.

Nobody who saw a shred of this past Lakers season could argue with the Mamba on his first point.

It’s the second half of Bryant’s tweet that should meet with some skepticism.

Epic, Kobe? Really?

Credit No. 24 for his optimism, but also remember this Lakers team is a long way from competing at any serious level. Whatever ‘”epic” connotes, it’s probably a few steps above the mediocrity toward which L.A. is likely headed.

Bryant’s health remains uncertain, hardly a surprise for a guy who’ll turn 36 before next season starts. His contract stands as the largest hindrance to a complete rebuild in Los Angeles, but the Lakers do have some money to spend nonetheless.

Only Bryant, Steve Nash and Robert Sacre are guaranteed to collect checks from the Lakers next year, which means general manager Mitch Kupchak could have around $22 million of cap room to play with.

Maybe the Lakers will become players in the free-agency sweepstakes, targeting big names expected to exercise early termination options like Chris Bosh and Carmelo Anthony. They’ll certainly place a phone call to LeBron James if he opts out as well.

They’ll also have a lottery pick joining the fold and will fill out the roster with short-term vets to bridge the gap between this season and the real free-agent frenzy in 2015.

Next season should be better (How could it be any worse?), but with the competition in the West, coaching uncertainty aplenty and the difficulty of acquiring transformative talent, “epic” seems out of the question.

Especially since Bryant’s prediction of an “epic” season depends on the Lakers decision-makers doing their jobs competently. And as ESPN’s Ramona Shelburne points out, the front office’s best efforts to emulate the late Jerry Buss haven’t gone so well—and might not get any better:

In many ways, his presence still guides Lakers decision-making, as if everyone at some point asks, “What would Jerry do?”

That should be a comforting thought. It certainly seems like a great compass. Yet sometimes genius loses something when you try to replicate it.

The Lakers need to forge a new identity and embrace the reality that they’re not some exceptional franchise that can rely on its history to attract talent. Next season is about building a foundation—not chasing greatness.

Of course, Bryant will never see things that way. It’s not how he’s wired. And besides, we wouldn’t want to hear any defeatist realism from him anyway.

Bryant’s enthusiasm can be an asset if it motivates executives and teammates, but his impatience can be dangerous. Balancing those two qualities will go a long way toward ensuring the 2014-15 season doesn’t stink as much as this one.

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Los Angeles Lakers’ Offseason Will Define Kobe Bryant’s Final Chapter

Years from now, long after Kobe Bryant has scored his final points and hung up his Los Angeles Lakers jersey for good, this summer will be looked at as the offseason that salvaged what was left of his career, or the ploy that diverted a pursuit to which there was no end.

Translation: This summer is important.

By extending Bryant for another two years, the Lakers committed to an accelerated rebuilding process. You don’t hand a 35-year-old Bryant nearly $50 million if you plan on lollygagging your way to better days. The turnaround needs to be quick. It needs to be instantaneous.

Or else.

“This organization is just not going to go [down],” Bryant told Darren Rovell for SportsCenter‘s “Sunday Conversation” in March, per ESPN Los Angeles’ Dave McMenamin. “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.” 

Next season. The path to Bryant’s sixth championship is supposed to begin next season. He has two years to win, two short years until he likely retires. There is no waiting, no delaying. There is only now. And right now, the Lakers are bad. They are tied for the NBA‘s fifth-worst record and approaching a draft with more individual meaning than any other draft since 2005 when they selected Andrew Bynum.

Typically, these are onset signs of an abiding rebuilding process. Games are lost and draft picks compiled for seasons at a time. Then, if said team is lucky, its reclamation process eventually yields a polished product capable of contending.

“Process” isn’t a word the Lakers are familiar with, though. They don’t rebuild; they reload. 

Especially now.

Contrary to most other transitioning teams, the Lakers are assembled for an immediate return to prominence. Not only do they play in one of the NBA’s biggest markets, but they’re teeming with cap flexibility, financially sound enough to place another superstar alongside Bryant.

That’s the plan. The only plan.

Or maybe not.

While speaking with USA Today‘s Sam Amick, general manager Mitch Kupchak downplayed the significance of Bryant’s input, refusing to admit the Lakers were operating on a short-lived timetable. He instead introduced the Lakers and their fans to a foreign concept: patience.

“I’m confident that over time, that we’re going to be able to assemble a team that’s competitive, fun to watch,” he told Amick.

Over time? As in not right now?

“The short answer is that yes, I’m hoping to be very competitive in a year or two, but the key really is over time,” he added. 

Well, that’s new. The Lakers don’t have time. Or rather, Bryant doesn’t have time. If he’s going to win, he has to win now, next season. Waiting isn’t an option for him.

But it is for the Lakers.

Quite literally, the Lakers are under no obligation to frantically spend on free agents this summer. Their agreement is a tacit one. They kept Bryant, so their job is to win now. That means making plays for free agents, wooing the Carmelo Anthonys and Luol Dengs and chasing the long shots like LeBron James. 

Unless that’s not their job.

If the Lakers prioritize their big picture over Bryant’s fast-closing title window, they’re free to grind this out and preserve cap space. And with each passing day, it looks more and more likely that’s what they’ll do.

Kupchak has already indicated the Lakers are interested in bringing back Pau Gasol, according to the Los Angeles Daily News’ Mark Medina. While that’s bound to please Bryant, Gasol isn’t someone you build a title contender around anymore. Pushing 34, he’s a stopgap, someone who eats up cap space and hopefully provides solid minutes as his team bides its time in anticipation of inevitably moving on to someone better.

Bleacher Report’s Kevin Ding also makes it clear the Lakers are unlikely to embark on a free-agent spending spree this offseason, preferring instead to wait for summer 2015, when the superstar pool deepens considerably.

But if nothing big shakes out, the Lakers are expected to keep Bryant, Nash, Kent Bazemore, Farmar or Kendall Marshall, Sacre and Kelly. They would probably fill out the rest of the roster in a similar style as last offseason, when Lakers’ general manager Mitch Kupchak sought out post-hype sleepers such as Johnson, Young, Farmar and Xavier Henry at minimum salaries with some jackpot potential.

[…]

No doubt the Lakers will be looking for a better second option than is listed there to help Bryant carry the scoring load. But if the club is intent on protecting its 2015 cap space to follow through on the promise not to settle for less than championship-level talent, the roster might not be much prettier next season than now.

Summer 2015 isn’t far off, but it still demands Bryant wait. The Lakers cannot forge a contender during the offseason while simultaneously looking ahead to 2015. It’s just not possible. And though asking Bryant to wait one more year may not seem like much, it’s a lifetime to him.

For starters, he’s Kobe Bryant, the abrasive, strong-minded, open-mouthed superstar who detests losing and views every ringless season as soul-crushing, life-maiming failures. On top of that, he’s now old and impatient and therefore cranky.

“We might have had the worst season ever or could have the worst season ever for a Lakers team, but now let’s have the greatest comeback that the league has ever seen,” he told Rovell, per McMenamin.

Imagine telling Bryant—that Bryant—his opportunity to legitimately contend for a sixth ring is limited to 2015-16, when the Lakers will presumably come closer to meeting his standards. Then picture explaining to him they cannot even guarantee that one season.

There’s no guarantee Kevin Love, Rajon Rondo or another star joins the Lakers in 2015. If and when they do, there’s no promising it works. And if it does work, there’s no ensuring it’s enough that soon.

Not even the Miami Heat consummated the Big Three’s first season together with a championship. The 2012-13 Lakers also understand how quickly ring-seeking expeditions can morph into hell-raising free falls. Waiting until 2015 to be aggressive essentially means the Lakers are placing stake in becoming the (more) modern version of the 2007-08 Boston Celtics, who won a championship immediately upon Kevin Garnett‘s and Ray Allen’s arrivals.

In more ways than one, this summer is a test, a measurable assessment of where the Lakers’ loyalties lie—to Bryant and his present-day expectations, or to their future and the need to build something that lasts longer than Bryant.

Answers will be provided in every move they make, from on-court personnel to who’s coaching from the sidelines. 

Will they chase superstars and place stock in big names? Or will they let most of this roster roll over into next season? 

Mitch Lawrence of the New York Daily News says the Lakers are hoping to part ways with head coach Mike D’Antoni. When they search for a new coach, will they target established sideline-meandering All-Stars who cater to Bryant’s win-now edict? Or will they think big picture, setting their sights on a younger, forward-thinking coach?

All this stuff matters. The Lakers will lean one way or the other, bending to Bryant’s will or advancing their own agenda. Barring James’ sudden desire to sign in Los Angeles or some other form of miraculous recourse, the latter is far more likely.

Luckily for Bryant, things could still change. The Lakers could opt to hunt big game, or the stars could come to them.

Early inclinations could also prove accurate, leaving the Lakers to place the fate of their next five-plus seasons ahead of Bryant’s final two. 

Whatever happens this summer, it’s going to set the tone for Bryant’s status during his remaining days.

Retrospectively, his extension will either be seen as an implicit duty the Lakers break their backs pandering to, or hush money meant to soften the blow of Bryant realizing the success he seeks won’t actually be sought for at least another year.

 

*Salary information via ShamSports. 

Follow @danfavale

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Kobe Bryant’s Leadership Must Become More Mentor Than Master

Kobe Bryant knows time is not on his side. But, while he yearns for that sixth championship, Bryant must also realize it’s not going to happen right away.

Bryant need only look at the young, inexperienced, injury-prone Los Angeles Lakers roster to realize it’s going to take a whole lot more than one high, first-round draft choice to bring back the magic.

L.A. is in store for a major overhaul this offseason, starting with a decision on head coach Mike D’Antoni, and the even-more difficult task of determining what the roster will look like for 2014-15.

The Lakers will need a plan to make over a squad that has the distinction of losing the most games in franchise history. With Bryant’s guaranteed place on the team for the next two years, he’ll need to embrace his role as elder statesman and mentor for the young talent certain to join L.A. when camp starts in the fall.

The word patience has never been one to share a sentence with the name Kobe Bryant. The Black Mamba thrives on winning, both individually and as a team, and has little patience when it doesn’t happen.

Until this season, Bryant had been to the playoffs 16 of the 17 years he’s been with the Lakers. But the 2013-14 campaign has been, without question, the most difficult for him. It’s hard to be a mentor when you’re only able to play in six games and your team is setting records for ineptitude.

Still, Bryant, who has been AWOL from the Lakers bench of late, really should be showing support for his teammates. Via Ben Bolch of the Los Angeles Times:

It doesn’t matter that the season has long been lost or that more than half the roster will be turned over in a matter of months.  Bryant’s presence lets the fans know that he still cares, that he remains the face of the franchise at a time when most would rather be reminded of anyone besides executive Jim Buss.

As the Lakers finish up their worst season since coming to Los Angeles 54 years ago, Bryant is well aware that his purple and gold are more black and blue. Help may be on the way in the form of high-level free agents, but most of that relief won’t be on the market for at least another year.

In the meantime, the Lakers of 2014-15 will probably include at least one top draft pick and younger (read: inexpensive) players they sign as free agents. Sound familiar?

With title hopes at least two to three years away, the big question is: can Kobe Bryant be a mentor to his teammates while at the same time demand execution, big-time wins and possible championships?

The answer is maybe. Bryant has demonstrated that ability, but he wants to see results and will settle for nothing else. Complacency and mediocrity don’t cut it with him.

Over 17 seasons, Bryant has gone from being a 17-year-old who thought he knew it all to arguably the hardest-working player in the NBA. He leads by example and that execution has led many players to commend him for it, even if their personalities clashed (Dwight Howard, Shaquille O’Neal).

Despite their disagreements, Howard applauded Bryant for what he learned during his all-too-brief stint with the Lakers last year. According to Melissa Rohlin of the Los Angeles Times (via LakersNation.com) Howard said of Bryant:

“He’s not one of those guys who’s going to get in the locker room and be vocal. He’s just going to do everything on the court. That’s the way he shows his leadership, just by how hard he plays, how hard he trains. [Bryant] has done a great job of that and not allowing other teams to see your frustration. He’s good at it. It’s just one thing that’s going to help me grow as a player. It’s not letting little things affect me, at least not showing it to the point where my teammates feel as though I’m not focused on the game.”

Bryant didn’t really help change Howard (people are who they are) and the big man left last summer for the Houston Rockets. But, his approach to the game and the seriousness in which he takes it is something younger Lakers can and will benefit from.

Nick Young is a perfect example. Uncertain of his status for next season, the team’s leading scorer (17.6 points per game, the best of his career) is a huge fan of Bryant’s and hopes he’ll be around next year when Kobe is healthy.

Via Mark Medina (Long Beach Press-Telegram):

Kobe has been a great mentor for me, just telling me all types of things during the game. That’s been unbelievable for me this whole year, learning from the greatest player to play this game. Who wouldn’t want to learn from and have Kobe in the locker room?

Bryant’s toughness has also rubbed off on shooting guard Jodie Meeks, certainly the team’s MVP this year. After scoring a career-high 42 points in a surprising upset of the Oklahoma City Thunder last month, Meeks paid tribute to Bryant for helping his game.

Meeks has almost doubled his career averages this season (33 minutes, 16 points, 46 percent shooting (40 percent from three-point line), three rebounds, two assists and 1.4 steals per game) and credits Bryant for much of that improvement.

(Via Mark Medina of InsideSocal.com): 

The biggest thing I’ve learned the most from Kobe is his mental approach to the game. No matter if we played last night, if he’s sick or hurt, he’s always ready to play. This year, I try to take that aspect in my game. No excuses. No matter how the season is going, go out there and play hard and give it your best effort.

Bryant is looking forward to big changes from his employers this off season. Given his unusual display of public commentary in recent weeks, we know Bryant does not want to play for D’Antoni, does want Pau Gasol back with the Lakers and does want management to field a team capable of contending next season, not in two or three years.

When asked on Twitter if he’d like for the team to select either Andrew Wiggins or Jabari Parker in the upcoming NBA draft, Bryant tweeted (via Bleacher Report’s Joe Flynn): “both have great potential. I’d mentor either one.”

And there’s also Dante Exum, the Australian phenom, who has made it known he’d love to play in Los Angeles. In fact, the 18-year-old shooting guard already is thinking about the possibilities.

Exum might have a few things going for him (per Sean Deveney of The Sporting News).  Exum has already signed with Kobe Bryant’s agent, Rob Pelinka, and plans to talk to the five-time NBA champion in the near future. The Lakers appear to think highly of the Australian prospect and may roll the dice on him if he’s still on the board on June 26.

Bryant excitedly accepted the Lakers’ generous extension offer of $48.5 million to play two more seasons and pursue that elusive sixth title. Via Yahoo! Sports Matt Moore: “I’m very fortunate to be with an organization that understands how to take care of its players, and put a great team out on the floor.  They’ve figured out how to do both.”

That was in November. Now Bryant faces the biggest challenge of his Hall of Fame career because his great Lakers are no more.

When he shut down his season in March, Bryant spoke to reporters and it was easy to see and feel his anger at the current the state of Lakers basketball. Via L.A. Times and Bill Plashke, “This is not what we stand for, this is not what we play for.”

The real test for Kobe Bean Bryant, mentor and master, will come later this year.

Read more Kobe Bryant news on BleacherReport.com

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Ideas for ‘Kobe Inc.’ After Bryant Retires from LA Lakers

Kobe Bryant told Forbes‘ Kurt Badenhausen that the goal of Kobe Inc. “is to own and grow brands and ideas that challenge and redefine the sports industry while inspiring the world.”

Last month Bryant announced his first venture in the corporate world, investing in the sports drink BodyArmor.

This new phase of Bryant’s career has been in the works for some time. 

The Lakers guard has spoken to many business leaders over the years and has dropped in on business classes at various universities around the nation. 

“I’ve done nothing but sit around and call and learn and listen,” Bryant said.

So what other products and ideas should Bryant invest in? Well, we’ve got a few ideas.

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