Kobe wants to be traded

[saucon17]

Kobe just announced on Stephen A. Smith Show (ESPN 1050) show that he wants to be traded. He is not happy with Lakers organization.

[saucon17]

Originally Posted by DaHoss9698

Listening to it now. Wow. As a Laker fan, I am stunned. Where does it go from here?

I can't see him playing with a team with a super star on the team already.

[saucon17]

I wonder if he would like to go back home to the Philly area. Th Sixers fans were always very supportive of him

[Antitrust32]

Originally Posted by saucon17

I wonder if he would like to go back home to the Philly area. Th Sixers fans were always very supportive of him

you mean when we boo'd him in the NBA finals?

I personally cant stand Kobe... unless he's playing for the Sixers.

[saucon17]

Originally Posted by Antitrust32

you mean when we boo'd him in the NBA finals?

I personally cant stand Kobe... unless he's playing for the Sixers.

Lori, The Philly fans boo everybody, even Santa. They have some love for him.

[disappearingdan_akaplaya]

trade him to the bobcats

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by saucon17

Lori, The Philly fans boo everybody, even Santa. They have some love for him.

I can't see him going anywhere except to a contender...I wonder if this has to do with the Jerry West thing?

[Antitrust32]

Originally Posted by somerfrost

I can't see him going anywhere except to a contender...I wonder if this has to do with the Jerry West thing?

The sixers could be a contender. Dont they have 3 first round draft picks? If you add Kobe, you get a contender in Philly.

[saucon17]

Originally Posted by somerfrost

I can't see him going anywhere except to a contender...I wonder if this has to do with the Jerry West thing?

Yes it does

http://sports.espn.go.com/nba/news/story?id=2884339

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/sport...at_Lakers.html

[The Bid]

We live in a world where OJ Simpson is out shooting golf every weekend. Why cant Kobe choose where he plays after catching a simple sodomy and rape charge

[Buffymommy]

This guy is an idiot. No one should take him. Arrogant prick.

Heh. He's not going anywhere. Mitch Cupcake is done.

I went up to his penthouse suite. [Buss] looks me dead in the face and says: 'Kobe, I am not going to re-sign Shaq. I am not about to pay him $30 million a year or $80 million over three years. No way in hell. I feel like he's getting older. His body is breaking down, and I don't want to pay that money to him when I can get value for him right now rather than wait.

"This is my decision. It's independent of you. My mind is made up. It doesn't matter to me what you do in free agency because I do not want to pay [Shaq], period.'"

"Dr. Buss said that," Bryant told Smith. "And I haven't said anything for years because I've always felt like folks were just looking to create controversy. Now I know. I realize what extent [the Lakers] will go to, to cover themselves."

Reached afterward, O'Neal told Smith that he believed his former teammate to be beyond reproach.

"I believe Kobe 100 percent," O'Neal said when reached in Los Angeles. "Absolutely. There's no doubt in my mind Kobe is telling the truth. I believe him a thousand percent.

"I would have respected Dr. Buss more as a man if he would have told me that himself, because I know he said it. But he didn't [tell me]. He never said a damn word to me."

Wow. Kobe has been blamed for Shaq's departure and now this is revealed? This is going to be very interesting in the coming days.

[Buffymommy]

Originally Posted by DaHoss9698

Just out of curiousity why exactly is that? And I will also add that you should BE NICE.

He is just an arrogant prick. He seems to be a prima donna. I just don't like him.

I am cranky today aren't I?

[Mortimer]

Originally Posted by Buffymommy

He is just an arrogant prick. He seems to be a prima donna. I just don't like him.

I am cranky today aren't I?

I would have guessed Curly.

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by Pillow Pants

Wow. Kobe has been blamed for Shaq's departure and now this is revealed? This is going to be very interesting in the coming days.

Let me explain why this is bullshit. First, I don't believe Kobe when he says that Buss told him that. Why? Because it doesn't make sense. Kobe says Buss told him they weren't going to pay Shaq that money and would rather trade him.....but why then did Buss offer Shaq a two-year addition to his contract for close to $23 million per year? Does that sound like a guy u are not trying to keep and want to get rid of? Not to me. Shaq was upset because he wanted another year and more money. Buss was willing to commit to two years but not the three Shaq wanted.

The next part is that, while Kobe didn't publicly say that if they keep Shaq, he's not resigning, it was pretty much public knowledge. Everyone knew that the two of them didn't get along and more importantly, everyone knew of Kobe's desire to be the main man on a team. Everyone knew it because HE TOLD EVERYONE THAT! He made it very clear that he wanted to test himself to the fullest and see if he could lead a team to a title. While he was a part, albeit an integral one, he was still a PART of a team that won titles, a team that was led unquestionably by three-time finals MVP Shaq. Kobe wanted the challenge of seeing what he could lead a team to. As an athlete, that's totally understandable. But then he shouldn't be acting now like he had nothing to do with it. Technically, he didn't ask them to trade Shaq. But he made it very clear that he wouldn't be coming back here if Shaq was.

The next part is that Kobe is complaining that Buss told him to his face that there would be no rebuilding period, that the team would try to win "NOW"! But that's not true either. Buss was very public in the media after the Shaq trade, as were other team officials. They clearly said that they had a plan for the summer of 2007. This was when the team would be free of the Brian Grant contract and were going to try and go after some of the possible free agents that would come up. It was the primary reason why they hired Rudy Tomjanovich. Yao Ming had said he had a very close relationship with Rudy T and obviously, Los Angeles has a much bigger Chinese population than Houston. The Lakers brought in Rudy T thinking that it would be enough to entice Yao to not accept Houston's extention offer and jump ship to LA. But Yao did accept Houston's offer. Same thing with Amare Stoudamire in Phoenix. Also, all of the top players from LeBron's class resigned with their teams and wouldn't be on the market anytime soon. The Lakers were anticipating getting one of the big stars of those two classes but it didn't happen. But the main point is that Buss and Kupchak were very public that this was a process with a plan for the summer of 2007.

The next thing to touch on is Kobe and Phil's conversation about what happened. Kobe says he contacted Phil and asked him what he was told after the 2004 season. He says that Phil told him that they were getting rid of Shaq and that they were also getting rid of him (Phil) because they were trying to reign in salaries and didn't want to pay a coach that much money for a team that was in rebuilding mode. Really? Let's see. Phil was making $6 million a year at the time. How much did they bring Rudy T in for? Five years, $30 million. Umm, that's $6 million a year. Now, I do remember Phil saying at the time that it would take closer to $10 million at the time in order for him to stay and there was plenty of speculation that he only went with that figure in order to force the Lakers to drop him, knowing they wouldn't go that high. Funny how just a few years later, they did anyway.

Kobe is saying now that he feels like a fool. He says that guys around the league would call him, specifically mentioning Baron Davis, Carlos Boozer and Ron Artest, and that he would go to Kupchak excited saying "we can get this guy" only to be turned down. He says Kupchak told him that Davis was too injury prone, the Boozer couldn't guard power forwards, and that Artest was too much of a headache. He says now that he knows they were just excuses because the Lakers had no intention of spending any money to get better. He says he feels lied to because he was never told of any rebuilding. But everyone else knew this is exactly what was going to be going on with them. How come he didn't?

U have Jim Buss going on the radio saying things about Phil. U then have Jeannie Buss defending her man and talking about her brother. Then u have assistant coach Kurt Rambis talking about Jim Buss. Then Jerry Buss is arrested for DUI. Now Kobe's saying it's over and nothing can be done to make this right. What a sorry ass mess.

[somerfrost]

Originally Posted by Pillow Pants

Wow. Kobe has been blamed for Shaq's departure and now this is revealed? This is going to be very interesting in the coming days.

Frankly, I tend to believe Kobe here...it's pretty obvious that the Lakers have done nothing to help the guy, I don't blame him! If it was Kobe who demanded Shaq be traded then why didn't the Lakers acquire talent to replace him...certainly lots of players would love to play in LA. And, if my memory serves me correctly, Kobe wasn't convicted of any crime and the woman's story was well...! What happened to the Duke Lacross players should serve to remind folks that justice should never be based on speed, and first appearances. Kobe and the Duke boys were guilty of bad judgement, in Kobe's case, he cheated on his wife...a private matter which they appear to have resolved, certainly none of our business!

[Mortimer]

Originally Posted by Buffymommy

He is just an arrogant prick. He seems to be a prima donna. I just don't like him.

I am cranky today aren't I?

More likely he won't do her.

[Mortimer]

I hear an umistakable whistling sound.





It's getting closer.

[King Glorious]

Originally Posted by somerfrost

Frankly, I tend to believe Kobe here...it's pretty obvious that the Lakers have done nothing to help the guy, I don't blame him! If it was Kobe who demanded Shaq be traded then why didn't the Lakers acquire talent to replace him...certainly lots of players would love to play in LA. And, if my memory serves me correctly, Kobe wasn't convicted of any crime and the woman's story was well...! What happened to the Duke Lacross players should serve to remind folks that justice should never be based on speed, and first appearances. Kobe and the Duke boys were guilty of bad judgement, in Kobe's case, he cheated on his wife...a private matter which they appear to have resolved, certainly none of our business!

Kobe demanded the Shaq trade in other ways beyond coming right out and saying it. By making it clear that he wouldn't resign as long as Shaq was here, that's basically the same thing. The question about why didn't they just acquire more talent to replace him is not simple. First, when the Lakers got Grant and Odom, their contracts, along with Kobe's, left them well over the salary cap. Then when they traded Butler for Brown, that didn't help things either. And the notion that lots of players would love to play in LA is WRONG. It's a perception that was true when Magic Johnson was here. Magic was loved throughout the league and was an unselfish player. It was furthered when Shaq was here. Again, a well loved player. When Karl Malone and Gary Payton and Rick Fox left money on the table to play with the Lakers, it was because of Shaq. They all said so. They all wanted to play with Shaq and have a chance to win a title. Especially in the cases of Malone and Payton, it was established guys that had won all the individual awards and made plenty of money already and wanted to play for a title. But once Shaq was gone, that lure was gone too. Why would any young players that are trying to make their mark in the league want to take less money to come and play for the Lakers and have to deal with a selfish and arrogant guy like Kobe? Especially after seeing how he had thrown Shaq under the bus in Colorado? The lure of LA in the past had as much to do with Magic and Shaq, even more actually, than the city itself.