D'Angelo Russell Discussion: Adopting A Professional Attitude

I'd like to see Kobe shoot about 1000 times over these last 4 games.

 

That's the thing. That is what we want to see.

 

I'm not speaking for you. I'm speaking for the numbers behind the billions of dollars in TV deals. It's nothing to do with the other Lakers on the team. It's clearly about Kobe at this point.

I want to see Kobe chuck like crazy. Then I want him to retire, and I want us to be immediately on to the rebuild.

 

Part of me would absolutely

What's up KB8?? Good to hear from you!

 

Personally I don't like watching Kobe dominate games right now. It's not very entertaining. I don't want to see him go 14/30 or something as a 37 year old while our kids are marginalized. It's scarring for them, it's not fun for me, and the team still loses.

If it was his final game? Sure. Go nuts!

But all these other games, part of me will always be disappointed in the way Kobe has behaved this season. There was far less of him taking the kids under his wing and far more of him selfishly assuming this whole season should be about him. The Lakers will go on without Kobe and I had hoped he'd be more up for the fatherly role because of that. Instead we got the same Kobe mentality from 2010 without any of the 2010 Kobe ability.

That's fine. I get it. And he's leaving next Wednesday never to return, but it doesn't bring me joy right now to watch a hobbled old Kobe chuck shots while the kids roll their eyes and are told to go stand in the corner. I'd rather see over the next few games these kids thrive and Kobe take a backseat. Then in the final game go for it. Go try to get 50 points for all I care. Try to dunk 2-3 times if you can. I'm excited for that.

 

Good to have you back man

 

Pretty much sums up my feelings on the Kobe situation. I'll just add that Kobe is taking advantage of the situation the front office and coaches laid before him. Byron, the front office, the emphasis by Time Warner Cable and ESPN 710 on washing Kobe's balls no matter what happens...Kobe was already one of the most narcissistic players in history. But what the front office did was essentially give a needle and the heroin to an ex addict.

 

I said it like "two for twen-tay" in my head.

 

I hear you and I agree to an extent. Kobe was handed that huge contract, told we have every faith in him, and I think at the time he signed the deal he (and maybe even the Lakers) thought "I can still do this." He probably looked at that deal and thought he was worth every penny and he'd prove us all wrong by taking a bad team far, but that was never what was going to happen. Even when I defended the deal, it wasn't from a "we'll be good with Kobe leading us" standpoint, it was from a macro view of the way people would view the FO. Turns out the FO screwed the pooch too often to be taken seriously anymore, but that's all beside the point.

The Lakers have spent an entire year feeding into Kobe's vanity and he is the type of person (not saying this is good or bad) who will soak that up like a thirsty sponge. I get it. Who doesn't love having their ego stroked? Unfortunately, it meant he would turn into what we have now which is a guy thinking this entire franchise is about him and the FO has doubled down on that to make some money.

Fine I get it... But I've had about all I can of the Tour. Kobe is my favorite player next to Magic, ahead of Kareem and Jerry West and Shaq and Hakeem. More than Worthy and Jordan. He has been one of the most captivating players I'll ever watch. Every moment of him on the court is interesting whether good or bad. I'll miss watching him play dearly. But we haven't seen the real Kobe in 3 years now and what we see these days is just a hobbled old man taking the fun away from a younger generation. I'm glad for him as a person that he got to go out the way he wanted to with a smile and everyone hugging him, but boy... the Kobe I remember won't even be this guy. It'll the guy that wanted to kill you every second he was on the floor. The Kobe I'll remember is the Mamba, not this Vino guy.

I'm honestly pretty excited to see Kobe go so we can start to focus on the Lakers instead of on Kobe. It sucks writing that, but it's the truth.

 

I don't know how to feel about these last 4 games as far as Kobe is concerned. Russ seems to have hit the wall, Randle is boarding but his offense has also hit a wall that needs new coaching, and JC is playing ok, but also looks 'over it'. We have nothing to gain from these last 4, I'm not sure if Kobe going into chuck mode would hurt the kids any further, they all seem to be cool with him and his farewell. I don't think he will though, I don't think the shoulder can take it, and I don't think he wants to risk injury. His LAST game though, that one I don't care if he takes 50 shots to get 50 points. Go for it, give the crowd what they are there for, try and go out on one last cool Kobe performance if possible.

 

Didn't even notice that he had 32 points until after I finished doing highlights