Kobe Bryant started out with the Los Angeles Lakers, and that’s where he’ll finish.
The legendary shooting guard has no intention of playing for another team besides the Lakers, as he revealed following the team’s media day on Monday.
“A lot of players want to go to different teams or contend to win championships,” Bryant told Yahoo Sports. “I’m a Laker, man. I’m a Laker for better or worse.”
Bryant was responding to questions spurred by comments made by his old head coach Phil Jackson, who recently said he thought Bryant would play for another team after the upcoming season.
“I don’t think it’s his last year,” Jackson said. “Sounds like it might be his last year as a Laker.”
A shoe-in Hall of Famer, Bryant has been banged up an awful lot the past couple of seasons, and many wondered if he will even attempt to play after the 2015-16 season. He is set to earn $23.5 million for the upcoming season, and there is no doubt his next contract would be for a significantly reduced price.
That probably won’t matter to Bryant, who makes millions in endorsements and who would be coming back purely for the love of the game if he does decide to play beyond this season.
When pressed even further about potentially playing for another team, should the Lakers decide not to bring him back, he retorted, “I’m a Laker, man. How many times do I have to say that?” Bryant said “Dude, I bleed purple and gold.”
With a career average of 25.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.5 steals per game, Bryant will go down as one of the greatest players to ever compete in the NBA. And, he’ll join legends like Jerry West, Magic Johnson, James Worthy and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the greatest Lakers of all time.
As for what’s coming up next, Bryant is excited about playing ball again after missing 47 games with an Achilles injury last year.
“I’m very excited to get out there and play,” Bryant said. “It’s hard to describe, but you miss the game. I miss competing and being out there playing. I try not to think about it because I get too excited about it. I try to focus on the here and now.”
Should he return to form after looking every bit his age the past couple of seasons, then the Lakers could surprise a lot of people by squeezing into the playoffs. No doubt, Bryant will be pushing himself and his teammates every single day towards that goal.