Kobe Would Rather Not Play in LA Unless it is Being Run by The Logo

The impetus for Kobe's demand - which he is denying, of course - is that in his exit interview, Kupchak et al. informed Mr. Bryant that they would be doing exactly nothing to change the Lakers current roster, at least according to Chad Ford.

Now, I am no General Manager of a professional NBA team, but just from watching the Lakers on my television from the second cushion on my couch, I am pretty sure they need to do something to that roster. If I was Kobe, I'd demand they get me someone who knows what the hell they are doing, because Mitch certainly doesn't, or I'd want out, too.

How the hell can Kupchak have watched the last two seasons and not feel the need to do something? What does he expect to happen from now until next season? Kobe will get even better? Farmar will pull a Deron Williams? Cake Thrower won't be terrible? If Kupchak's general plan is to make no moves and just think this roster needs another year "to gel" then he is just a very, very, very bad talent evaluator and a very, very, very bad GM and/or he makes the worst plans ever. Probably both.

(You'd think Kobe would have taken this into consideration the first time around. I mean, he did see who Kupchak traded Shaq for, right?)

So, what could West do that Kupchak can't...er, refuses to? Well, for starters, something. It isn't like the Lakers don't have a few desirable pieces. Bynum seems to be coveted, they have a midround pick in a loaded draft, Lamar & Farmar could bring something back.

Really, all Kobe needs is one more above average player around him and they are title contenders. If they traded this year's pick, Bynum and Cake Thrower to Jermaine O'Neal (who knows if that'd happen; I'm just sayin, try it), they'd be in the conference finals.

The West is only getting better an deeper, and Kupchak's grand plan to restore the Lakers to prominence is to do nothing. Stand pat. Let Kobe destroy himself for another 82 games, sneak LA into the playoffs, and the lose. Again. This is ridiculous. Can't Kobe just fire him? Matt Millen is baffled by his job security.

The thing that is so dumb about the Lakers plan is that they have no direction. Either keep Kobe and Lamar and overpay via trade for some questionable veterans and try to win now, or ship Kobe outta there, even though you want get fair value (because there is none) and build around your young pieces. Make up your damn mind. Make a tough choice and have some frickin' conviction about it. My God, I couldn't care less about the Lakers and the stupidity of the whole thing has me all fired up.

The whole thing is a non-starter, though, because like Kupchak said, he isn't doing a damn thing to the roster and that presumably includes Bean. Besides, what the hell could you get back for Bryant that would make it worth it?

And if Kobe somehow did get traded to a contender - and the contender somehow managed to acquire him without gutting its entire roster - everyone would hate Kobe. The only reason he isn't hated right now is because his team has no chance to win. Imagine Kobe competing for titles every year? People would go right back to the "all he does is shoot," "he isn't a team player," "remember what he did to that poor girl in Eagle, Co." and my personal favorite, "he doesn't make his teammates better."

So Kobe is stuck in LA for at least another year or two, and he will somehow get people to feel sorry for him, even though he created this whole situation in the first place, partly because when he ran Shaq outta town (or at the very least, didn't do everything in his power to make it work) he entrusted the best year's of his career to someone who is not good at all at what he does. It's no one's fault but Kobe's, really.