Los Angeles Lakers: Should They Trade Kobe and Tank?
Should the Los Angeles Lakers trade Kobe Bryant and tank the season?
Two games into the NBA season, and it looks like a lost one for Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Prized rookie Julius Randle suffered a broken leg in his first NBA game. Byron Scott‘s offense has looked sloppy at best. The defense has been non-existent.
Those are a just a few of the issues the Lakers face heading into a back-to-back set against two of their Pacific Division rivals; the Los Angeles Clippers and the Golden State Warriors. A pair of tough games for any NBA squad, but for these Lakers, who have already seen defeat in blowout fashion twice to start the year, these match ups must seem borderline impossible challenges.
There is speculation that this could be the worst season in franchise history, a sequel to the production of the same name a year ago. This time Kobe Bryant has been cast in a starring role, one that he is going to have to accept, however reluctantly. This plot line has spawned an important question: Should the Los Angeles Lakers tank, and trade Kobe Bryant?
To answer this, let’s look at it in two parts. The Lakers having a terrible record and keeping Kobe Bryant on the roster aren’t mutually exclusive, so it doesn’t make sense to look at it that way.
First, should the Lakers tank? Absolutely.
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The Los Angeles Lakers do not own their first-round draft choice this year unless it drops in the first five selections in the lottery. While there’s a chance they could get in that range from any lottery position, the best way to assure that is to be absolutely horrific, allowing them a shot at a player to build for the future. With a wealth of post-laden talent projected to be available for the upcoming draft, these players would help fill in some of the glaring weaknesses on the roster.
Part of this plan would include pawning off assets; Steve Nash‘s expiring contract, Jeremy Lin (also with an expiring deal), Ed Davis (team-friendly contract), and others would be on the block for draft choices and young prospects. The return on these pieces likely wouldn’t net the Los Angeles Lakers anything spectacular, but it would jump start the rebuilding process, and make no mistake about it; this is NOT a reload, regardless of what the front office says.
Now, to the trickier part of this question. Should to the Lakers trade Kobe Bryant.
Throwing all context out the window, and looking at the predicament purely from a black and white, logical standpoint the answer is yes. That is what teams do with aging stars on bad teams; they send them to contenders to acquire assets. Bryant surely would love to play for a title in his twilight years, and he could provide a scoring punch to any championship hopeful. The problem is that there IS context to the situation, and everything isn’t black and white.
Kobe Bryant is beloved in Los Angeles, arguably more than any player in the league is in their city. His presence is a major reason why the Lakers continue to be massively profitable despite their horrendous performance. Sure, trading Kobe makes some basketball sense if they can get back the right pieces, but is a non-lottery pick and a young player worth alienating the majority of your fan base?
People are still showing up to see Kobe because it’s Kobe Bryant and even in his later stages it’s clear he can still put on a scoring exhibition any given night. He’s an attraction, beyond a fan favorite; he’s a living legend for the Laker faithful. It’s not good business to do what the Philadelphia 76ers are doing, and it would be worse to jettison a legend who has repeatedly stated his desire to finish his career in LA.
If everything was about basketball in the NBA, I would get it. Bryant would be headed somewhere like New York, Miami, or Oklahoma City in exchange for expiring contracts and a first-round pick. But it’s not all about basketball, as we so rudely get reminded when business and agendas get in the way.
Money matters; Kobe Bryant generates that as well as anyone. Fan happiness matters; that generates money as well. Stripping away that happiness is bad business, especially in a market that demands to be entertained.
Kobe Bryant will remain a Los Angeles Laker, but I am not sure that will stop this team from tanking. This is a marriage that will continue on; for better or worse.