Kobe Bryant has made it clear that he has not decided whether this season will be his last in the NBA. Bryant is entering the final year of his contract with the Los Angeles Lakers and although it is going to be his 20th season it might not be his last. If Kobe were to decide to play a 21st season it is very possible that the Lakers don't want him back and that he could look for another place to play. If that were the case he may not have much interest from any other teams, according to Baxter Holmes of ESPN.
Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak did say that if Kobe wanted to play after this season the Lakers would welcome him back but he would have to accept a smaller role and probably a much reduced salary. Just for arguments sake if Kobe decides the Lakers are no longer a good situation for him, executives say he may not have many other options.
Bryant has dealt with injuries the past couple of years and was even moved down to number 93 on ESPN's NBA Rank. Bryant is also not the most well liked guy around the NBA as he is considered selfish by some and has made many enemies throughout his years in the league so that would likely make teams shy away from taking him on especially at his advanced age.
"The problem that Kobe has that's different from anybody else is that he doesn't really have any allies in the league. He's only known the Lakers, and he destroys everything in his path. I'm not naming names, but some of his former coaches are probably not going to speak fondly of him. But you really limit yourself of places that he could possibly go. I don't know of anybody who in their right mind would say getting him in their organization would be a great idea," said one NBA executive.
The New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Clippers were mentioned as teams that might have interest in Kobe should he decide to play after this season and leave the Lakers but that is just speculation. At this point the consensus around the league seems to be that nobody wants to play with Bryant as the Lakers haven't signed a big time free agent in a while and that could factor into his decision of whether to retire or not.
This is all just speculation at this point as even Kobe doesn't know if he is going to want to play past this season. If Kobe were to get through this season healthy and play well it wouldn't surprise anyone to see him come back for another year and that is where it will likely get interesting. Executives think the Lakers need to move on from him and that other teams don't want him so is it possible that Kobe may be forced to retire? Who knows, but at this point it is definitely interesting to think about as we look ahead.
