Let’s
take a look at four factors that could possibly push Kobe Bryant into retiring
after this season.
FACTOR
#1: DECLINING SKILL SET
Kobe
Bryant is more than aware that he’s no longer the player that he used to be.
Unfortunately, his reaction to that awareness is to deny it and try to prove it
false. That’s leads to him putting up horrible numbers on a team that’s lost 5
of its first 6 games.
Bryant’s
season stat line seems respectable enough: 16.2 ppg 2.6 apg and 3.8 rpg. But
that’s before you realize that he gets his 16 points on 32% shooting and,
worse, on 21% from the 3pt line. His threeepoint percentage is especially
horrible since he’s shooting almost 8 threepointers a game. For context, Kevin
Durant is only shooting around 7 threepointers per game and he’s hitting 42% of
those.
FACTOR
#2: CONTRACTS
The
Lakers have been known as a team who will spend money to earn money (or, in
this case, championships). They’ve never
shied away from spending money going after superstar free agents (Shaquille
O’Neal and Dwight Howard come to mind) and that’s not likely to change soon.
The
problem now is whether Kobe Bryant will finally accept that he isn’t a max
contract player. Right now, he is the highest paid player in the league, with a
25million dollar contract. Is he worth it? Based on performance, not even
close. On reputation, maybe. But games aren’t won on reputation.
If
Kobe Bryant wants to play a couple more years, the Lakers should offer him a
respectable veteran’s deal, maybe in the 10-12million dollar range and offer
big bucks to whoever they deem to be Kobe’s successor (Kevin Durant, anyone?).
If Kobe can’t deal with that, then he will likely retire.
FACTOR
#3: CHAMPIONSHIP WINDOW
Simply
said, if the Lakers start winning this year, Kobe Bryant will be back. All it
takes is for the Lakers to miss the playoffs by a couple of games or, God
forbid, sneaks into the 8th seed before being swept, Kobe Bryant
will see it as the Lakers being 1 more year or 1 more piece away from being
championship contenders.
If
he starts thinking that, it can motivate him to be more sensible about his salary,
all in the hopes that he can add another championship to his belt.
FACTOR
#4: LEGACY
This
year, Kobe Bryant has been ranked by ESPN as the 93rd best player in
the league. That means you could build 7 full All-Star teams before you get to
Bryant and he’d still be the 8th best-ranked player on that 8th team
of pseudo-All Stars.
Bryant’s
last few playing years have been plagued by leg-related injuries, which have
robbed him of his jumping ability, athleticism and foot speed. Now, he has to
rely more on guile, court positioning, shooting, and veteran moves to get his
points.
And
that isn’t like the Black Mamba. Kobe Bryant is one of the most cerebral players
in the NBA. He, of all people, is highly aware of what happens to fading stars.
He knows the importance of leaving an untarnished legacy. Once Kobe realizes
that he can’t live up to the first 17 years of his legacy, he’ll finally call
it quits.
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