Kobe announces Retirement

[ByRd]

I knew it was coming but man this hurts and sucks, this season will be his last. Since I've started watching bball it was cause of Kobe and it just will not be the same, im gonna miss the mamba.

 

[Johnnie Red]

Awesome career, no one can deny that.

Hopefully he can sit back and let the young guys take over. Not really in his nature but that is what the Lakers need.

 

[aqua_duck]

The way he's been playing lately it was inevitable

 

[ByRd]

From the moment
I started rolling my dad’s tube socks
And shooting imaginary
Game-winning shots
In the Great Western Forum
I knew one thing was real:

I fell in love with you.

A love so deep I gave you my all —
From my mind & body
To my spirit & soul.

As a six-year-old boy
Deeply in love with you
I never saw the end of the tunnel.
I only saw myself
Running out of one.

And so I ran.
I ran up and down every court
After every loose ball for you.
You asked for my hustle
I gave you my heart
Because it came with so much more.

I played through the sweat and hurt
Not because challenge called me
But because YOU called me.
I did everything for YOU
Because that’s what you do
When someone makes you feel as
Alive as you’ve made me feel.

You gave a six-year-old boy his Laker dream
And I’ll always love you for it.
But I can’t love you obsessively for much longer.
This season is all I have left to give.
My heart can take the pounding
My mind can handle the grind
But my body knows it’s time to say goodbye.

And that’s OK.
I’m ready to let you go.
I want you to know now
So we both can savor every moment we have left together.
The good and the bad.
We have given each other
All that we have.

And we both know, no matter what I do next
I’ll always be that kid
With the rolled up socks
Garbage can in the corner
:05 seconds on the clock
Ball in my hands.
5 … 4 … 3 … 2 … 1

Love you always,
Kobe

 

[HayneKloppter]

3 seasons too late, la is f**ked now thanks to him

 

[lafai]

He's definitely a legend but yeah he hurt the Lakers more than he's helped them these last 4 or so years.

 

[McLovin]

$24 million off the books plus whoever else is expiring. Sign a big time free agent or two and pick up Ben Simmons with the first overall...

 

[HayneKloppter]

Big lakers fan mate living over there reckons they're after durant

 

[Aragorn]

Big lakers fan mate living over there reckons they're after durant

They'll probably make a play at Westbrook next year.

Kobe is better off retiring immediately.

Still +60 games in the season, although Scott will need him to keep on shooting 1/17

 

[KeepingTheFaith]

$24 million off the books plus whoever else is expiring. Sign a big time free agent or two and pick up Ben Simmons with the first overall...

This. If you want to get back into contention (playoff, not immediate contenders) then having cash to spend big in free agency the same time you get a high quality draft pick is the time to do it.

Whether anyone takes the bait is another thing.

 

[Wizardman]

Being a Lakers fan, I have mixed feelings about Kobe Bryant.

Kobe is the biggest reason why I not only follow the Lakers…but basketball. Jordan came around too early for me to fully appreciate…but I recognize that Jordan is the greatest basketball to walk the Earth. It is kind of like a Wally Lewis/Darren Lockyer comparison.

Make no mistake…Kobe is the best player since Michael Jordan. He may be an ass of a bloke, but nobody could ever question his potent mix of talent, work ethic and pure will to win.

Kobe is the best and worst thing to happen to the Lakers over the last 15 years. His combo with Shaq was frightening. Funny enough, his best years as an individual were shortly after Shaq left where he practically could shoot from anywhere.

The sad part is, I think those years (after Shaq) gave him way too much ego which had made him an ass to play with. Lakers have paired him with many good players….but they all left way too quickly. Thing that pisses me off is that it seemed that he wanted to win BUT only if he was the main contributor in doing so. He NEVER got along with guys that threatened to be the star of the team.

His last two years have woeful. It will be interested to see how he is remembered after he is gone. I’ll remember him as the greatest since Jordan but also the most selfish player I’ve ever seen in the NBA.

 

[HayneKloppter]

Being a Lakers fan, I have mixed feelings about Kobe Bryant.

Kobe is the biggest reason why I not only follow the Lakers?but basketball. Jordan came around too early for me to fully appreciate?but I recognize that Jordan is the greatest basketball to walk the Earth. It is kind of like a Wally Lewis/Darren Lockyer comparison.

Make no mistake?Kobe is the best player since Michael Jordan. He may be an ass of a bloke, but nobody could ever question his potent mix of talent, work ethic and pure will to win.

Kobe is the best and worst thing to happen to the Lakers over the last 15 years. His combo with Shaq was frightening. Funny enough, his best years as an individual were shortly after Shaq left where he practically could shoot from anywhere.

The sad part is, I think those years (after Shaq) gave him way too much ego which had made him an ass to play with. Lakers have paired him with many good players?.but they all left way too quickly. Thing that pisses me off is that it seemed that he wanted to win BUT only if he was the main contributor in doing so. He NEVER got along with guys that threatened to be the star of the team.

His last two years have woeful. It will be interested to see how he is remembered after he is gone. I?ll remember him as the greatest since Jordan but also the most selfish player I?ve ever seen in the NBA.

go easy there buddy,..... remind me again amongst his distinguised career how many league mvps he picked up? now there's a thought.

for me personally i will celebrate kobe bryant's retirement, he is everything that posterises what was WRONG with the nba post jordan....because before jordan retired i lived and breathed nba, i am a walking almanac for that era, i was playing fantasy bball by mail in the early 90's before the rest of the world even knew what fantasy sports was, i have a huge box of annual bball digest hoops and other mags and fleet cards that i know will make me a mint one day,....and i gave up nba when kobe came along coz i hated the way the game was played.

when people speak of legacy, they look at how people like chamberlain and russell then bird and magic then the pistons bad boys then jordan etc how they revolutionise the game, i'm sorry but kobe has no legacy for how he influenced the way the game was played other than trying to be a clone of the bloke before him.... and he made the game ugly.

it was only last season watching what golden state are doing that has reinvigorated my interest in the league. yes the game has changed, it's now pretty much 5 blokes who can stand on the perimeter and launch bombs and spread the ball,....but it encompasses team work, something kobe will be remembered for having none of.

 

[gorilla with a shotgun]

go easy there buddy,..... remind me again amongst his distinguised career how many league mvps he picked up? now there's a thought.

for me personally i will celebrate kobe bryant's retirement, he is everything that posterises what was WRONG with the nba post jordan....because before jordan retired i lived and breathed nba, i am a walking almanac for that era, i was playing fantasy bball by mail in the early 90's before the rest of the world even knew what fantasy sports was, i have a huge box of annual bball digest hoops and other mags and fleet cards that i know will make me a mint one day,....and i gave up nba when kobe came along coz i hated the way the game was played.

when people speak of legacy, they look at how people like chamberlain and russell then bird and magic then the pistons bad boys then jordan etc how they revolutionise the game, i'm sorry but kobe has no legacy for how he influenced the way the game was played other than trying to be a clone of the bloke before him.... and he made the game ugly.

it was only last season watching what golden state are doing that has reinvigorated my interest in the league. yes the game has changed, it's now pretty much 5 blokes who can stand on the perimeter and launch bombs and spread the ball,....but it encompasses team work, something kobe will be remembered for having none of.

Does this make Steve Nash twice the player that Kobe was? Now there's a thought.

 

[gorilla with a shotgun]

$24 million off the books plus whoever else is expiring. Sign a big time free agent or two and pick up Ben Simmons with the first overall...

Too bad the mighty Celtics are getting Simmons with Brooklyn's pick.

 

[HayneKloppter]

Does this make Steve Nash twice the player that Kobe was? Now there's a thought.

no it doesn't,....but it strongly supports kobe NOT being the best player since jordan

 

[Wizardman]

no it doesn't,....but it strongly supports kobe NOT being the best player since jordan

Who is? I will say that Kobe's attitude would have cost him a few rings. It is sad (but not undeserving) to see the way his career has petered out.

 

[gorilla with a shotgun]

I'd say Lebron but we could argue all year.

Tim Duncan is another candidate i guess.

Kobe will go down as an all time great like the two above which is all that really matters.

 

[Aragorn]

Its an interesting point you all bring up. It’s a pity he had to be the best player of his generation, because like Jordan, Kobe was a selfish prick. The man wasn’t humble, he didn’t care about others, his team, it was all about winning. His mentality was only the strong survive, which to me, sends the wrong message in our society.

Look at Step Curry, LBJ & Durant - they all want to win too, but in addition to working hard, they also promote team work, helping others, being humble, and openingly thankful for the opportunities life has brought them. These message and themes resonates in all facets of life outside of BB.

In short, great basketball player, but flawed role model for our generation.

 

[McLovin]

Best player post Jordan? Lebron easily.

 

[Aragorn]

Best player post Jordan? Lebron easily.

He's not helping you much in fantasy.

;-)