Here’s What To Expect In Kobe Bryant’s Final Season In Los Angeles
By Keith Rivas
The Black Mamba’s not known for living a quiet life on or off the court — can he rally the troops for a playoff push next season in his last stand?
Let’s be real for a minute and not fool ourselves on something before going any further on this topic.
The city of Los Angeles, the Lakers franchise, and professional sports as we know it has never had anything like Kobe Bryant and never will once he decides to call it quits officially.
Bryant took a team that was banking on being good here and there and turned them into a dynasty with his signature — and for that, there’s not enough thank you’s.
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We know for sure that there will be one last glimpse of the greatest Laker this generation in the 2015-16 season, and lots of opportunities have opened up for him to make the most out of his last ooh rah.
For example, Julius Randle is expected to be able to play at 100%, the Lakers picked up the No. 2 overall draft pick in this year’s selection (most likely means Towns or Okafor), and young gun Jordan Clarkson is ready to give the best in the business his A-Game.
Could you seriously ask for more?
While in regards to the Pacific Division and Western Conference the Golden State Warriors will be the clear team to beat, there’s no reason the Lakers can’t make a push as the second fiddle.
It’s definitely not what they or Bryant are used to — I mean you don’t win five titles as an underdog every single time — but it might be just what the Lakers need to get the ball rolling for their future.
Because nobody thought it’d be this bright this early.
In fact, when Bryant’s season ended because of injury last season, we weren’t even sure how good or bad Clarkson was going to be.
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What we did know, however, was that Jeremy Lin and Steve Nash have had better days elsewhere, and neither of them were getting the team where they needed to be.
Well guess what, Clarkson kicked some serious butt and now has the approval of Lakers fans galore.
Not a bad place to be if you ask me.
The Lakers success in the next season doesn’t depend fully on who they pick second in the 2015 NBA Draft, but it will have some consequences that are good and bad.
The good news is, no matter who they pick, Clarkson will not be the baby face and he’ll be given much more respect in the locker room than just some kid trying to get his name in lights.
Why?
Because there’ll have to be room for either a Duke or Kentucky star alongside some of the most resilient fans, history, hallways, and players in professional sports.
If for some reason the Lakers just decide to shock us all with a ridiculous pick, don’t be too caught off guard by that either.
Bottom Line: There’s no going back now
There might very well be something else brewing if they do that.
Maybe a trade for Kevin Love ASAP or an attempt to store up some goodies to trade for Kevin Durant — who, you know, might not be a bad guy to ride shotgun with since he’s pretty good.
Just wait.
Greatness is coming back to the Lakers, and it’s on speed dial.