The 1996 NBA Draft saw 12 Teams pass on Kobe Bryant and even when making the selection at Pick 13, the Charlotte Hornets traded Kobe Bryant (Draft Rights) to the Los Angeles Lakers for Center – Vlade Divac. The Cleveland Cavaliers passed on Bryant with the 12th Pick and selected Center – Vitaly Potapenko. Even more of a head-scratcher is that Cleveland then used their 20th Pick to draft another Center – Zydrunas Ilgauskas.
Since then, Kobe Bryant has been more than a household name. Bryant has emerged as an international star and brand. When raising a hand, Bryant’s hand glimmers 5 rings heavier than it did in 1996. Bryant recently passed Michael Jordan in Total Points Scored for 3rd All-Time in the NBA. Additionally, Bryant holds the crown for the All-Time Missed Field Goal Attempts. The Mamba responded, “You can’t worry about criticism. You can’t worry about failure.” Throughout his career, Kobe has 20+ Missed Shot Attempts in 44 Games. Wilt Chamberlain leads this list with 20+ Missed Shot Attempts in 117 Games (For Example: that’s going about 10 for 30 from the field in a game).
Fast forward to 2015 and Kobe Bryant is still owed $25 Million on the final year of his contract, which expires in 2016. Over the past 21 Months, a torn achilles and fractured bone in his knee limited him to just 6 Games during the 2013-2014 Season. The 2015 Season is likely over as well with only 35 Games played this year after a recent Lakers Press Release confirming a torn rotator cuff. When the news broke about Bryant’s Rotator Cuff Injury, Kobe jokingly said, “This is what happens when I pass too much.” The video below shows a Michael Jordan-esqe moment as Bryant battles through his season ending injury.
The Los Angeles Lakers are still held hostage by Bryant’s monster contract, which posts at $25 Million in 2015-2016. The NBA Salary Cap is projected to increase to $67 Million. If Bryant retires, the Lakers may escape paying $25 Million. They would have a total of eight rostered players at a total of nearly $26 Million. According to the Los Angeles Times, “when calculating Cap Room, the NBA would add in 4 Empty Roster Charges which would put the Lakers at $19 Million in Salary, leaving roughly $48 Million in spending power. If they choose not to cut Hill, that number shrinks to $39.5 Million. If Kobe stays and without Hill, that number changes to $23.5 Million in spending power.”
Top Free Agents for the 2015-2016 Season:
LeBron James, Kevin Love, Paul Millsap, Brook Lopez, Marc Gasol, Al Jefferson, Monta Ellis, Rajon Rondo, Roy Hibbert, DeAndre Jordan, Luol Deng, Dwayne Wade, Omer Asik, Goran Dragic, LaMarcus Aldridge, Rudy Gay.
A Look Towards the Future
The Rockets owe LA their 1st Round Pick (Part of the Jeremy Lin Trade – Lottery Protected in 2015). The Lakers owe the Phoenix Suns their 1st Round Pick, but it’s Top 5 Protected. Given the current roster and talent appearing on the Lakers squad, we expect them to fully enter tank mode for the remainder of the season, which would allow them to hang onto their pick. The NBA Draft isn’t flooded with talent, but expect the Lakers to couple an early 1st Rd Draft Pick, a Role Player with their Late 1st Rd Draft Pick and a big splash in the Free Agent Market. The addition of a healthy Julius Randle and likely return of Kobe Bryant sets them up for a building block type season in LA in 2015-2016, where Kobe Bryant will hopefully be able to end his career on his own terms. Many say, “The End is Near” for Kobe. We don’t necessarily believe that … Yet!
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