Kobe Bryant is retiring at the end of this season and the Los Angeles Lakers nowhere near playoff contention. We’ve known for some time that the Lakers’ home game on April 13 against the Utah Jazz will be Kobe Bryant’s last NBA game.
Still, as this in an Olympic year, it wasn’t guaranteed to be Kobe’s final competitive game. The legendary superstar could have made an Olympic trip.
Today, that notion was put to bed.
Kobe just said he's not going to play in the Olympics: "I think it's the young guys' turn to go and play and perform."
— Mike Trudell (@LakersReporter) January 17, 2016
This stands in direct contrast to what Bryant said earlier this season.
“It would mean the world to me to be around those guys. I think to be able to have a chance to continue the relationship that I already have with most of those guys, talking and just kind of being around each other and understanding that this is it, it’s just us being together, that would be fun,” Bryant said in November, via Tim Reynolds of the Associated Press.
Kobe Bryant is one of the top 10 players in the history of the NBA. If he wanted to go to the Olympics like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird did in 1992, it would be awfully hard for anyone to say he’s not deserving. This is true despite his rather pedestrian 17 points per game, 35 percent shooting percentage, and 25 percent three-point percentage in 2015-16.
With that said, only 12 players are going to the Olympics, so there are going to be some very difficult decisions for USA Basketball with or without Bryant. Without Kobe, young perimeter players like Jimmy Butler, Kawhi Leonard, Paul George, and Klay Thompson will now not only have more of a chance to make the team, but also to thrive once the Olympics begin.
While Kobe Bryant is worthy of an international sendoff in Brazil, electing to not go to the Olympics is an admirable stance and probably will bolster the already favored American team’s chances at a gold medal.