Los Angeles Lakers: Kobe Bryant is Becoming a Problem

I’m sure every Laker fan had a similar reaction when ESPN released their scathing feature on how Kobe Bryant is the root of the Lakers problems. It’s a long piece that rips into one of the game’s legends in a brutal manner. I was furious when the piece came out. How is attacking one of the franchise’s greatest players like that fair? And then I read it again. And again. And I realized that the piece is entirely right: Kobe Bryant is not the reason the Lakers are terrible night in and night out. But he is the reason the team is built the way it is.

There has always been that one negative aspect to Bryant. As great as he has been over the years, he has always suffered from an over-inflated ego. We saw what happened 10 years ago between Kobe and Shaquille O’Neal, when two alpha dogs butted heads because of their ego’s. It didn’t end well for the franchise, as they ultimately tore the team apart. 10 years later and the league has grown smarter. Players understand that they can’t reach their full potential as superstars with Kobe Bryant on the same team as them. Everyone wants to avoid another Shaq-Kobe fued and it’s why star players do not view the Lakers as a marquee destination.

It’s a shame because Kobe is still producing at a very high level. The man is fourth on the NBA’s all-time scoring list and could realistically end at the top, if he plays enough. It’s unfortunate that, despite all the time he spends training, he is still stuck in the old ways. He grew up watching 80’s basketball and Michael Jordan. In those days, teams (particularly the Bulls) had one clearly defined superstar, or the “alpha dog” and one secondary star, or the “beta dog”. Kobe has played with this in mind his whole career, and he hasn’t adapted to the new school of thinking.

The new age of basketball over throws the old way of thinking, as players focus more on playing as a team and winning the championship as a team. Just look at the Spurs. There is no clearly defined alpha dog on that team and they are a juggernaut as a result. It’s a lot harder to stop a team who plays team ball, than a team who plays “Hero ball”.

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People want their stars to last as long as they possibly can. Nobody wants to see a player rapidly decline. Kobe has gone above and beyond that, playing at an elite level for 18+ seasons, still ranking at the top of the shooting guard ranks. The fact that Kobe refuses to go out so early, putting in countless hours of training and countless minutes of preparation before, during and after each season is what makes him appealing to the casual audience. It’s that stubbornness that has made him a legend. But it’s also his weakness. Players know they are going to get 100% of Kobe, whether that’s good or bad.

So while people would put up with Kobe and his shenanigans in the past, it simply doesn’t fly anymore. Players have taken notice to the sinking ship that is Kobe Bryant‘s career. They know for all the ego and selfishness, Kobe is on the decline. He still puts up great numbers, but how successful have the Lakers been? Kobe puts the team on his back nightly, yet the team continues to struggle?

The fact is, Kobe is becoming a bigger burden than he’s worth. His defense is slipping with each passing season and his efficiency just isn’t good enough to warrant 25 shots a game. Whenever he’s in the game, the offense is stagnant because everyone is standing and watching “the Kobe Bryant show”, and the defense has been abysmal, with Kobe playing center field half of the time.

And this wouldn’t even be a problem, if Kobe could just get past his ego. There is absolutely no chance that any team in the modern NBA could win a championship with Kobe Bryant as their best player. He still puts up good numbers, but it isn’t resulting in team success because Kobe simply cannot carry a team to success anymore. This isn’t 2006, where Kobe can score 35 points a game and the team can be relatively successful. He simply does not have that kind of fire power anymore.

If he could just give the team a little wiggle room, then Mitch Kupchak could realistically build around him. For example, there was absolutely no reason to give Kobe a max extension a few years ago and it has played a part in crippling the Lakers financially. Kobe had already said he wouldn’t have taken a smaller deal, as he thinks he is worth more than that. It’s a shame because star players of his caliber have taken pay cuts to help their teams out.

Most notably, Dwyane Wade of the Miami Heat, Dirk Nowitzki of the Dallas Mavericks and Tim Duncan of the San Antonio Spurs have taken cuts in recent years. It’s not a coincidence that those three teams have been the last three NBA champions. There is no reason why Kobe couldn’t have taken up a similar role that Wade took and become a beta dog to a legitimate superstar player to help the franchise reach the top of the mountain again.

It’s unfortunate that Kobe has left a sour taste in the mouths of so many. He is an NBA legend who was possibly the hardest working player of all time. And he won’t be remembered as fondly because of these past three years. It’s a shame because we should be celebrating his body of work and his incredible career instead of remembering all of his flaws and putting him under the microscope.

And while Kobe puts in 100% night in and night out, it’s ultimately his fault that the Lakers have whiffed on so many star players in recent years. As great as Kobe Bryant has been over the past 18 years, the truth of the matter is: the Lakers won’t get better until Bryant either changes his mind set, or decides to hang them up. I’m willing to bet that he retires before becoming someone’s Robin again.

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It’s Not All Kobe Bryant’s Fault, But He is Still a Part of the Problem

By Kevin Sanchez | Oct 23, 2014