The Sports Rumors

It’s Time to Move On

It seems odd to be writing about a basketball story while we’re in the middle of college football, pro football, and the major league baseball championship series. Especially since the basketball season hasn’t even started yet. But here we are, talking about basketball, and who better to talk about than the most polarizing figure in the game since Michael Jordan. It doesn’t matter if you love or hate Kobe Bryant. You pay attention when his name is in the news. That’s how he’s polarizing. You hear about him and either hate him more or love him more. Either way, you have an opinion on the guy.

This time is a little different though. We saw him shoot off at the mouth about wanting to be traded, then not wanting to be traded, then being indifferent about it. Since training camp has started in Los Angeles, Kobe has been mum on the topics of early summer and has focused his interviews and conversations on the future of the Lakers basketball team. Funny thing is, he is the future of the basketball team and his mood, good or bad, dictates the direction of the franchise.

I predicted in an article I did back in the middle of summer, “Eye of the Storm”, that Kobe would have another explosion and the Lakers would be forced to trade him.

…But in order to advance in the playoffs, Kobe is going to need a lot more than what he’s got. What are the Lakers waiting for?

I still can’t see this feud ending quietly. I don’t see it that way. I am giving this until the second week of September, a little over a month, before we hear from Kobe again, louder than ever. And don’t be surprised if this time, a lot of the same media members who bashed him in May have come around and see his viewpoint. He will have a lot more support this time around and remember, what Kobe wants, Kobe gets.

I was about a month off on the time frame, and granted, Kobe wasn’t the one who brought this to the media this time around, but nevertheless, it’s a story again. The Trade-Kobe or Don’t-Trade-Kobe debates have changed direction to Where-To-Trade-Kobe. It’s no longer a matter of “if” anymore. It’s a matter of “when and where”.

So why is Kobe Bryant all over ESPN and national talk radio again if he didn’t say anything? Because his owner, Jerry Buss, decided to unleash the media frenzy by admitting that he will listen to offers for Kobe. Translation: Kobe Bryant is on the trading block. Now what really irks me about this decision is why it took so long to decide to trade him. There were players like Kevin Garnett, Baron Davis and Jason Kidd available much earlier, yet the Lakers were persistent upon not trading #24. Now, all of a sudden, they have decided that it’s best to part ways. I absolutely understand the importance of trading Kobe Bryant due to his contract. For those of you who aren’t aware, Kobe is the only player in the league who has the power to veto any trade. He can dictate where he wants to go. Kobe also has an option in two years to become a free agent. If he becomes a free agent, he most certainly will sign with another team and the Lakers will get nothing in return. Therefore, it is of utmost importance to trade Kobe for the most value that they can get in return. Why it took so long to do so? I don’t know and don’t understand.

There were rumors that came out late yesterday afternoon that Kobe was so infuriated by Jerry Buss’ opening up to the media, he emptied out his locker.

a) Kobe shouldn’t be mad at anyone for opening up to the media, because he did it first.

b) Those rumors proved to be false anyway.

The reason I brought it up though was because the Lakers season and team cameraderie, any that they would have had, is now shot. It is impossible to play with the same focus and effort when you don’t know if your star player is going to be with you in a week or not. That’s how it will be for his teammates. How will it be for Kobe? I don’t question his competitiveness or want to win at all. I even took a lot of heat over the summer for saying he is as competitive as Michael Jordan. However, he is still a human being. Take your job as an example, whatever it may be. If you are not sure that you will be working for your company next week or not, will you be able to maintain the same type of focus and enthusiasm compared to if you knew you’d be there for 5 years? If your boss was talking to other companies about swapping you out, even if it is at your own request, you won’t be able to maintain the same level of focus at work. It’s just not possible. My point in all this is that the Lakers MUST move Kobe as soon as possible.

Another reason is, if they hold on to him the rest of the season and begin next year with him on the roster knowing that the clock to him opting out and walking as a free agent is ticking, every single team in the league will lowball the Lakers. The Lakers have leverage right now in trade talks. They aren’t forced by the hands of time, yet. They will be in a year. I think it’s best to trade him now because your franchise will get fresh new players at the start of the season, rather than in the middle. Your city won’t have to deal with the constant rumors month after month. The Los Angeles fans will be able to come to the Staples Center without having to fret and think, “This may be the last time I see Kobe in a Laker uniform.” The other time you can trade him, and still be able to get a fairly good deal, is right before the draft next April. This way, a team can offer you a nice top pick to go along with the players that they package. Only downside of this is Kobe’s veto clause. Translation: He’s not going to allow you to trade him to the Bobcats, even though they are offering you a top 5 pick in addition to players. The teams that Kobe will go to via trade are Chicago, Dallas, and Phoenix. All three of those teams are championship contenders so they’re not going to have the sexiest draft choices come April.

So to reiterate: Trade Kobe Now.

There are three teams that he will willingly go to, as mentioned above. I’ll start with the least likely of the bunch and work my way to the most likely. Note that in the NBA, the salaries have to match up for a trade to work. You can’t trade Kobe for 5 years worth of first round picks because the money must match. That thought process is used before suggesting or giving my opinion on trades, like the ones below.

Phoenix Suns

Kobe Bryant for Shawn Marion and Raja Bell.

The Suns would make this trade in a heartbeat but the Lakers would be moronic to do so. The dollars match up but the player talent doesn’t. But then again, you can never put something past an owner and GM who traded Shaquille O’neal for Briant Grant, Lamar Odom, and Caron Butler (then traded the best of the three, Butler, to the Wizards where he became an all star and received Kwame Brown in return).

Dallas Mavericks

Kobe Bryant for Dirk Nowitzki and Josh Howard

This trade makes sense for the Lakers because they get a top 5 player and a solid complimentary player in return. Dirk will give them the low post scoring that they need. Josh Howard won’t score 30+ like Kobe, but 20 a game isn’t unreasonable. The salaries match up. The snag in this trade is that Kobe will be in the same conference and will most likely become the biggest hurdle for the Lakers to overcome in the playoffs. That’s too much irony for Buss to stomach.

Chicago Bulls

Kobe Bryant for Ben Wallace, Luol Deng, Kirk Hinrich

Kobe Bryant for Joakim Noah, Luol Deng, Ben Gordon, Draft picks

Either one of these trades would work financially. Los Angeles could address a number of needs, most notably a big man and a point guard in the first scenario. In the second, they could get a lot of young talent as well as draft picks. Either way, they would be happy. I think the Lakers would take this deal in a heartbeat. Believe it or not, the snag in this deal is the short pockets of the Bulls owner, Jerry Reinsdorf. He doesn’t like to spend a lot of money and if you bring in Kobe, you’re going to have to resign him to an enormous deal. If you don’t, you’ll have to deal with a lot of competition for the free agent in two years. The other reason Chicago is hesitant is because they spent a lot of time and effort putting together the pieces of their team through the draft.

That being said, I think it’s an absolute no brainer. Those pieces that Chicago put together aren’t going to be good enough to beat a Western Conference team. They weren’t even good enough to be in the finals last year. Ask Lebron James what its like to face Duncan, Ginnobli and crew in the finals. It’s no easy task. Kobe has been there, done that. He’s played with the big boys and he’s played them very well. Adding him to the Bulls would put them in the Finals, without a doubt. They’d also have an extremely good chance to win because western teams usually beat themselves up just trying to reach the Finals.

There comes a time where you just need to part ways, and do so without damaging yourself and the other individuals involved. We all knew this would end badly. Now it’s important for L.A. to swallow its pride, and make a move to save face and cut their losses. If not, the fans will never forgive them for letting Shaquille O’neal and Kobe Bryant leave them and getting absolutely nothing in return for two hall of famers.