Kobe Isn't Going Anywhere

[Joe Mama]

I saw a short interview of Kobe Bryant by Tom Zenner of the local Channel 12 tonight. Bryant is sure wearing his poker face. When asked if Phoenix was on equal ground with every other choice he said absolutely. He said he is keeping all of his options open. When he was told that the Phoenix Suns fans would love to have him here he seemed pleasantly surprised. He said that's great.

He also said he likes the valley because it is calm here.

I honestly think if this was the Los Angeles Suns they would have a great chance at landing him.

BTW Mark Curtis said before the interview that the Phoenix Suns have now freed up enough salary cap room since this latest trade to sign Kobe Bryant. He obviously knows very little.

Joe Mama

 

[George O'Brien]

Originally posted by Joe Mama
I saw a short interview of Kobe Bryant by Tom Zenner of the local Channel 12 tonight. Bryant is sure wearing his poker face. When asked if Phoenix was on equal ground with every other choice he said absolutely. He said he is keeping all of his options open. When he was told that the Phoenix Suns fans would love to have him here he seemed pleasantly surprised. He said that's great.

Joe Mama

So what are the chances?

 

[elindholm]

I agree with George O'Brien that "superstars," whoever they are, very rarely change teams through free agency.

Regarding slinslin's list,

Hardaway was already damaged goods.

Pippen was seen, correctly, as being past his prime.

Hill was an injury question mark, although perhaps the best example.

McGrady was a bench player before he went to the Magic.

McDyess, Gugliotta, and Baker were all a lower level of player than I think GO'B meant.

So in fact, the point is well taken: top-level players very rarely leave their teams through free agency. If you count forced sign-and-trades, it is less rare, but it doesn't look as though that scenario is acceptable to the Lakers with Bryant.

GO'B asked what the likelihood is of Bryant leaving. Here are my estimates:

75% -- Bryant stays with the Lakers.
5% -- Bryant is convicted, agrees to a plea bargain resulting in a temporary suspension from the league, or is forced into early retirement by committing another sex crime.
6-8% -- Bryant signs with the Suns.
6-8% -- Bryant signs with the Clippers.
4-8% -- Bryant signs with someone else.

 

[devilalum]

Originally posted by Joe Mama

BTW Mark Curtis said before the interview that the Phoenix Suns have now freed up enough salary cap room since this latest trade to sign Kobe Bryant. He obviously knows very little.

Joe Mama

Doesn't it piss you off that this guy gets paid to know this onfo and still doesn't have a clue?

All he has to do is have one of his little helpers look it up.

Or read this board

 

[George O'Brien]

Originally posted by elindholm
I agree with George O'Brien that "superstars," whoever they are, very rarely change teams through free agency.

Regarding slinslin's list,

Hardaway was already damaged goods.

Pippen was seen, correctly, as being past his prime.

Hill was an injury question mark, although perhaps the best example.

McGrady was a bench player before he went to the Magic.

McDyess, Gugliotta, and Baker were all a lower level of player than I think GO'B meant.

So in fact, the point is well taken: top-level players very rarely leave their teams through free agency. If you count forced sign-and-trades, it is less rare, but it doesn't look as though that scenario is acceptable to the Lakers with Bryant.

GO'B asked what the likelihood is of Bryant leaving. Here are my estimates:

75% -- Bryant stays with the Lakers.
5% -- Bryant is convicted, agrees to a plea bargain resulting in a temporary suspension from the league, or is forced into early retirement by committing another sex crime.
6-8% -- Bryant signs with the Suns.
6-8% -- Bryant signs with the Clippers.
4-8% -- Bryant signs with someone else.

Thank you. Perhaps you are right. I'll Chaplin respond to your stats on the Clippers.

Realistically, the "someone else" is mostly Denver. Utah has the cap space, but little else. Atlanta? Is there something less than zero?

 

[slinslin]

Pippen signed a huge contract...

He was still a great leader and averaged 20/5/6/2

Grant Hill had almost NO injuries when he left Detroit. He missed 8 and 12 games in his worst seasons and the rest 80+ or 50 in the lockout season.

Vin Baker averaged 21/10/3/1/1.5 in his 4th year only when he signed with Seattle.
He was a top player in the league.

Gugliotta averaged 20/9/4/1.5
Colangelo recently said again that Googs was regarded as a top 10 player at that time or close to that.

McDyess was bound to be an allstar when he signed the max.

TMac could have gotten max contracts from 2 other teams and averaged 16/6/3/2 in 30mpg in his last Raptors season as a 21 year old player who made the jump from highschool.

I would say chances are 60%Lakers, 38%Suns, 2%Prison.

 

[elindholm]

I can't get to hoopshype, which is where I get my salary numbers, but might Detroit be in the running if they let R. Wallace go, abandon Okur, and bribe the Hornets to take one of their large contracts?

 

[slinslin]

Detroit has the same salary commitment as the Suns.

Yes if they renounced all their FAs which is very doubtfull and dump another player they could definately get in the race.

But I don't give Detroit a chance.

 

[George O'Brien]

Originally posted by slinslin
Detroit has the same salary commitment as the Suns.

Yes if they renounced all their FAs which is very doubtfull and dump another player they could definately get in the race.

But I don't give Detroit a chance.

A much more likely scenerio would be for the Spurs to dump Malik Rose and make a run. Malik is having a bad year so it seems unlikely, but I would rate them as a much bigger factor than the Pistons.

 

[slinslin]

For that to happen the Spurs would have to renounce Manu Ginobili I think.

So that won't happen because if they do that and can't get Kobe they just gambled their possible next ring.

Detroit and San Antonio are very good team and both of them would probably lose their chance to resign key players, young key players for a chance to sign Kobe so I don't see it happening.

If they were as bad as the Suns probably yes.


Regarding Detroit, I can't see Kobe going to Detroit. New York possibly and every other city with nice weather probably.

 

[fordronken]

The thing that interests me is that a lot of the big name players who left teams to sign big deals are supposed to be really great people. They also had a lot of bad stuff happen. Gugliotta, Baker and Hill come to mind.

I was just remembering that after Grant Hill signed with Orlando he put out a two page add in the main Detroit paper thanking all the fans for their support. It's really too bad that his career went the way it did.

On another side note, there is a slight similarity between Shaq going to L.A. as there would be if Kobe came to Phoenix, in terms of the eventual product. I thought of this when the play-by-play announcer on ESPN for today's game was asking if any free agent brought a team a championship. He came up with Moses Malone and Shaq, though Shaq took some time to get his. In a way, Kobe could be kind of like Shaq; coming into a new surrounding while entering his prime. And Amare could be like Kobe; the young talent waiting to blossom into his prime. Kobe would enter Phoenix as the unquestioned number 1, with a potential superstar waiting in the wings. I think that could be very intriguing to him. Plus, there would be all of those stories about how Kobe "took a team from the bottom of the western conference into a playoff team the very next season all by himself", even though Phoenix's record right now is deceiving, and there would be a lot more to it than just Kobe.

 

[slinslin]

Wasn't Kareem a FA and brought a championship to LA?

Kidd was close the last 2 years.

On different championship teams other guys that maybe were not the main guys were still key players to win a championship.

No matter who you sign, draft or trade for there is always a chance bad stuff happens to them. You can't let that influence your decision unless they have a history of that.

 

[fordronken]

Originally posted by slinslin
Wasn't Kareem a FA and brought a championship to LA?

Kidd was close the last 2 years.

On different championship teams other guys that maybe were not the main guys were still key players to win a championship.

No matter who you sign, draft or trade for there is always a chance bad stuff happens to them. You can't let that influence your decision unless they have a history of that.

They didn't win until Magic's rookie year, correct? Was that the same year? And anyway, Kareem didn't even play the game that won them the championship. Some rookie point guard started at center instead.

 

[Brian in Mesa]

Originally posted by slinslin
Signing Kobe would be a shot in the heart to all Lakers fans.

Not so. I hope he signs anywhere but back with LA. He is a piece of crap (as a person, not as a player). Just my opinion. If you want him, you can have him as far as I'm concerned, provided he's not in jail.

 

[slinslin]

Do you think they would have made it that far without Kareem?

 

[asuhoopsnut]

Originally posted by slinslin

Wasn't Kareem a FA and brought a championship to LA?

Kidd was close the last 2 years.

On different championship teams other guys that maybe were not the main guys were still key players to win a championship.

No matter who you sign, draft or trade for there is always a chance bad stuff happens to them. You can't let that influence your decision unless they have a history of that.

FYI ...... Kareem was traded from the Milwaukee Bucks to the Los Angeles Lakers for David Meyers, Junior Bridgeman, Brian Winters, and Elmore Smith.

 

[George O'Brien]

Originally posted by asuhoopsnut
FYI ...... Kareem was traded from the Milwaukee Bucks to the Los Angeles Lakers for David Meyers, Junior Bridgeman, Brian Winters, and Elmore Smith.

It's been too long, but I remember hearing it was a forced trade.

Many major moves have been forced trades. The Suns got Charles Barkley on a forced trade, the Bucks got Oscar Robinson on a forced trade, Chamberlin forced a couple of trades, and the list goes on. Even before the players union became as powerful as it is, top players could always force their team to make a deal.

The current free agency rules makes that even more likely. Most teams cannot afford to let a key player leave without someone to take his place, unless it puts the team well below the salary cap. Many, if not most, "sign and trades" are forced trades. The player gets more choices than a pure FA signing and the old team gets something.

 

[Chaplin]

Originally posted by George O'Brien
Thank you. Perhaps you are right. I'll Chaplin respond to your stats on the Clippers.

There's about a 5% chance of that 6-8% chance actually happening.

Actually, I like 0%, that's a good number.

 

[Chaplin]

Originally posted by Brian in Mesa
Not so. I hope he signs anywhere but back with LA. He is a piece of crap (as a person, not as a player). Just my opinion. If you want him, you can have him as far as I'm concerned, provided he's not in jail.

Morally, you're a good guy. But it WILL be so, no matter how much you hate the guy.

 

[thegrahamcrackr]

Originally posted by asuhoopsnut
FYI ...... Kareem was traded from the Milwaukee Bucks to the Los Angeles Lakers for David Meyers, Junior Bridgeman, Brian Winters, and Elmore Smith.

Welcome to the board!

 

[Joe Mama]

Welcome to the message board, asuhoopsnut.

I'm not sure why we are also fascinated with precedent. There has to be a first time for everything whether it's landing a big-time free-agent or winning a championship without a superstar center.

Joe Mama

 

[sunsfn]

I have finally figured this out................

The suns are clearing enough cap space to sign Kobe,,,and, Karl Malone!! Gary Payton will opt out of his contract and also sign with the suns...........

 

[slinslin]

I could accept Payton.

But not Malone! Not MALONE!

 

[Joe Mama]

Originally posted by slinslin
I could accept Payton.

But not Malone! Not MALONE!

Gary Payton would be my difficult for me to take, but I think I could accept him as a Phoenix Suns player. If Karl Malone ever played for the Phoenix Suns I think I might roll myself right into the canal.

Joe Mama

 

[slinslin]

haha Joe your software now makes it look like you would commit suicide if Malone NEVER played for the Phoenix Suns.