Laker News: Kobe Signs 2 Year Extension

[dd24]

[QUOTE]The Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant like each other. They really do. And want to stick together. And have put it in writing. General Manager Mitch Kupchak announced today that the Lakers have signed Bryant to a two-year contract extension. According to ESPN reporter Chris Broussard, the deal will pay Bryant $23.5 million in the 2014-15 season, and $25 million in the 2015-16..

[bladefd]

Kobe definitely didn't take the paycut we were hoping for. It looks like he won't be getting another ring before he retires. That's way too much money. He'll still be one of the highest paid players in the league and that won't leave the team the cap space they need to go out and get a couple other max players. I would think this means they'll probably let Gasol go too.

If you look at it closely, this is NOT a happy day for Lakers fans. I tried hard to buy it, but I just cannot. I will look at it from Laker fan perspective and not Kobe fan perspective (I'm both).

1) Kobe hasn't played a single game off a HUGE injury. Why would you agree to a blockbuster extension at this point in time? At least wait till he plays a few weeks. You want to see what sort of shape he is in and how his leg is.

2) Lakers have $36 mill on the books now into the summer. Before, it was $12.6 mill. That means less spending money next summer. Why not wait till we know who is willing to come to LA before agreeing to terms with Kobe? He said he is a Laker for life so its not like he would go sign with another team at 36..

3) Kobe is 36. This makes Kobe the HIGHEST PAID player in nba next year. More than LeBron/Durant/CP3/Love/Wade/Dwight/etc. Is he still in his prime? No. Market value is important as we go into next summer. Nobody would even offer Kobe ANYTHING close to what Lakers offered.

4) CBA gets much stricter when over the cap starting next summer. Lakers can afford all and any luxury taxes, but this will still limit how much Lakers will spend. They won't go up to paying $250m+ (salary + luxury taxes). That is asking for too much

Huge mistake that will end Kobe's career without another ring and Lakers without room to build a championship team for next 2 years. I lost respect for Lakers front-office and one Kobe Bryant. This is a very disappointing day for Lakers fans and for the Lakers organization

[dd24]

I agree with all the above points. I see no reason for getting the extension done already. Sure the Lakers FO has seen Kobe in practices and they probably know a bit about his health but let him play for a bit this season at least. I also see no reason to make Kobe the highest paid player in the NBA. The other superstars of the league realize that being the highest paid doesn't get you help to win. I'm a huge Kobe fan, but all of this makes no sense to me. I think this really makes it difficult to put together a championship contender.

[Lakers91]

When taking into account his age, Achilles injury to be blunt of all the stupid things management has done lately this might be arguably the worst, despite liking kobe, I'm a lakers fan first and this by far reduces what id hoped for in terms of salary space , tempted to say egomaniacal and greedy move by kobe but if management are dumb enough cant blame him solely. I was hoping maybe something like ten, fifteen maximum, 20+? I wouldn't describe it as a happy day whatsoever, oh well management keep his merchandise selling, hope its worth that ridiculous figure, would prefer no loyalty from managements perspective than blind loyalty. Whoever decided to extend now and whoever did the negotiations should resign with public shame for such stupidity.

[DKLaker]

Excellent posts guys :applause: :applause: :applause:

The only chance we have is if we miss the playoffs and get a top 3 pick, plus add a top 2 free agent......then pick up ring chasers on the cheap.

Bye bye Pau, Bye Bye Nash......done deal.

Somehow I wonder if this is a reflection of Kobe's skepticism of Jimmy Buss and 'Antoni. Can you imagine if Kobe took an enormous cut and then Jimmy did more idiotic things, couldn't pick up a star, we get a bad draft pick and kept 'Antoni? How stupid would Kobe look then? He would be kicking himself in the head.........gotta wonder about this factor.

[Lakers91]

Excellent posts guys :applause: :applause: :applause:

The only chance we have is if we miss the playoffs and get a top 3 pick, plus add a top 2 free agent......then pick up ring chasers on the cheap.

Bye bye Pau, Bye Bye Nash......done deal.

Somehow I wonder if this is a reflection of Kobe's skepticism of Jimmy Buss and 'Antoni. Can you imagine if Kobe took an enormous cut and then Jimmy did more idiotic things, couldn't pick up a star, we get a bad draft pick and kept 'Antoni? How stupid would Kobe look then? He would be kicking himself in the head.........gotta wonder about this factor.

The downfall of nepotism...when you pick the idiot of your relatives to take over, kind of hard for Jim to be overthrown when his dad to memory said he wanted him to run the company (although Jim could have just drugged Jerry and told him to say whatever he liked, wonder if that could be brought up in international court I doubt it so that's a pity).

Well in the more than a decade I've been watching the Lakers, I feel both the least secure and probably the most disgusted as a fan at both certain select players but more so at the stupidity of management. Jim's great big thing he likes to claim is scouting Andrew Bynum (couldn't have stayed just a scout?) which got us Dwight well he's gone, so please tell me his great big achievement in the last few years that makes up for the James Dolan like destructive path he's leading the Lakers on?

Possibly the worst dealing in negotiating history all but ever, Kobe has never played for anyone but the Lakers and previously has said along with Mitch he's a Laker for life, it's years gone by since he requested to leave to either LAC or the Bulls to memory. I mean for goodness sake, for that amount in my opinion all things considered you play hard ball as much as possible, 20 million a year + isn't hard ball that's bowing to his every whim, no offense to Kobe but I don't like it at all but I can understand it, but management seem to have just saw the first negotiating figure and said yep we'll take it and sign you back. Who knows what role Kobe has played in all of it, he seemed to praise the D'Antoni hiring in public (but in private he might have said to management I want Phil) and just said that to make him look happy with management who knows, or he could have been all for it. Just a woeful day and no doubt with this management excluding Mitch worse days to come. The amount although I'd rather Kobe stay is inexcusable to be honest, at that amount you say we want to preserve cap space we don't want you taking a giant massive selfish heave at it again, and you offer reasonable I think 10-15 was, and then you scoff at the offer he obviously signed for, literally scoff and say yeah you can retire or leave before we pay you that for goodness sake. This is not a young 25 year old Kobe, it's a 36 year old coming off arguably one of the worst injuries a sportsman can suffer, and you offer him 23 million and 25 million? Management needs IQ testing to where if you are in the bottom 1% of the population or mentally challenged (like it seems some of them are) you aren't allowed in a position of power, my god, well that's my rant over but I feel no better.

[bladefd]

Somehow I wonder if this is a reflection of Kobe's skepticism of Jimmy Buss and 'Antoni. Can you imagine if Kobe took an enormous cut and then Jimmy did more idiotic things, couldn't pick up a star, we get a bad draft pick and kept 'Antoni? How stupid would Kobe look then? He would be kicking himself in the head.........gotta wonder about this factor.

That is also why Kobe+Lakers should have waited. By simply waiting, Kobe would know what sort of plan Buss/Lakers FO have going forward once FA starts. Lakers would also know where they stand as far as the FA roster signings is concerned going forward. If it is a championship plan, Kobe could agree to a paycut. If not, he can take his money. They can still discuss and negotiate, but just don't agree to final terms till after FA starts in summer.

Unfortunately, it points to another issue. Kobe had no intention of taking a paycut; he still thinks he is the best player in NBA and should be paid accordingly. The Lakers rushed it due to SOME reason that defies all logic, which I will not speculate on (knowing Jimmy Buss' past insane blunders - i.e. telling Mitch to wake up Phil at 3am in morning to tell him they going with D'antoni on Saturday after telling Phil he has till monday to think about it OR waiting 1 week to quickly rush hire Mike Brown OR firing Mike Brown ~5 games into new season :roll: ). Sorry, I am only capable of thinking with logic.

I'm at a loss for further words..

[Lakers91]

That is also why Kobe+Lakers should have waited. By simply waiting, Kobe would know what sort of plan Buss/Lakers FO have going forward once FA starts. Lakers would also know where they stand as far as the FA roster signings is concerned going forward. If it is a championship plan, Kobe could agree to a paycut. If not, he can take his money. They can still discuss and negotiate, but just don't agree to final terms till after FA starts in summer.

Unfortunately, it points to another issue. Kobe had no intention of taking a paycut; he still thinks he is the best player in NBA and should be paid accordingly. The Lakers rushed it due to SOME reason that defies all logic, which I will not speculate on (knowing Jimmy Buss' past insane blunders - i.e. telling Mitch to wake up Phil at 3am in morning to tell him they going with D'antoni :roll: ). Sorry, I am only capable of thinking with logic.

I'm at a loss for further words..

I've now turned to wondering whether Jim Buss is as dumb as his decisions make out or whether he's just slightly below average in intelligence instead but at this stage I'm still going towards moron. Well he's born into money so it doesn't really matter, still having fun with dad's money and corporation/organisation with no idea how to do it himself.

[gts]

The Lakers had space to sign 2 max contracts next summer, even if Kobe took a 15 million dollar paycut as opposed to the 10 million dollar pay cut he took they still would only have space for 2 max contracts.

So Kobe is one of those max contract players for next summer, as he should be, clearly Lakers staff have seen enough of him in practice to know this is a realistic contract. It actually helps the Lakers to get this done now. If they had let him become a free agent then there would have been a 33 million dollar cap hold on the books and the Lakers would not have the space to sign another max contract next summer.

In 2015 the Lakers if they continue to play their cards the way the seem to be headed they will have the space for a third very large contract depends on where the cap is set but it's expected to be upwards of 66 million which could create space for a third max. Either way there's room for spending some decent money

That's how you build in today's NBA get two or three max contracts and fill up the roster with with vets willing to play for the vets min.

Now to the part that's going to make most of you cringe...

Shame on Laker fans expecting Kobe to take a drastic paycut (as if leaving 25 million the next two years on the table is peanuts...lol) after all the years of Kobe proving doubters wrong. all the naysayers saying the Lakers will never win with Kobe as a second option.. Then 3 titles later they said Kobe would never make the playoffs without Shaq one trip to the finals and it's well ok he made the finals but he'll never win a title without a dominant big man.. 2 titles later and on and on it goes, never win a scoring title never win an MVP blah blah blah to now it's he'll never play again he's lucky to walk his career is over.

Damn people how many times does Kobe have to prove people wrong for some of you to get it through your skulls this guy is special?

You know that huge Time Warner TV contract that's going to allow the Lakers to go deep into the luxury tax after the reset to pay all these max contracts people want to collect? That contract was built on Kobe's back. those 5,000 dollar a game courtside seats, yeah he had a bit to do with that too... I read an article in Forbes last summer that he's generated close to half a billion dollars for the Lakers in his 17 years

For 17 years this guy has done nothing but bled purple and gold, come into camp ready to go, challenged everyone from Jerry Buss and Mitch Kupchak to Shaq, Pau and everyone in between to be the best they can be. No excuses he's played through injury after injury, jumped over every damn hurdle that could be thrown in front of him and always delivered...

Every time you turn on that Laker game, every time you plunked down a couple hundred bucks for tickets you know one thing, if he's on the floor he's going to give it his best or die trying... now some of you are whining that he won't play for a deep deep discount or are pissed off that the Lakers actually recognize his value to the franchise for now in the future and in the past....

Kobe wouldn't be taking this contract if he didn't believe he'd be able to be Kobe and contribute on a high level or if he doubted the front office would be able to make it worth his effort to fight through the injury and put in the effort to get back to being the Black Mamba.. His signing this contract is the Lakers saying we have faith in you and it's Kobe saying I have faith that the Lakers have a solid plan in place. If anything you should have learned by now Kobe is all about winning and he doesn't take half efforts from anyone including the front office lightly...

Kind of sad after all these years he has to prove himself all over.. bad enough he has to prove it to the league and all the normal naysayers but Laker fans themselves.. geesh gimme a break

[bladefd]

The Lakers had space to sign 2 max contracts next summer, even if Kobe took a 15 million dollar paycut as opposed to the 10 million dollar pay cut he took they still would only have space for 2 max contracts.

But Lakers would have 5 mill extra left to add elsewhere. For instance.. Instead of signing a $5m veteran, they could add the extra 5mill to instead get a $10m veteran that might be slightly better. That might be the difference between a Mo Williams and a Kyle Lowry just for example purposes. Neither are max contracts, but the difference between the two role-players could be championship-contender versus one that is not.


So Kobe is one of those max contract players for next summer, as he should be, clearly Lakers staff have seen enough of him in practice to know this is a realistic contract. It actually helps the Lakers to get this done now. If they had let him become a free agent then there would have been a 33 million dollar cap hold on the books and the Lakers would not have the space to sign another max contract next summer.

Do explain the cap hold part. I thought that if you waived a player's bird rights, he would be a full free-agent and off the books. Why would there still be a 33m cap hold even after waiving the bird rights? If you do waive bird rights, you can still sign the player to a brand new contract, correct?


In 2015 the Lakers if they continue to play their cards the way the seem to be headed they will have the space for a third max contract.
That's how you build in today's NBA get two or three max contracts and fill up the roster with with vets willing to play for the vets min.


I don't think that a 3rd max deal in 2015 sounds realistic. Kobe's 25m + 2nd max at 20m = 45m. That leaves 14.5m (estimating ~59.5m cap in 2015, 58.6m this season). Not enough for 3rd max contract. Plus, remember, you don't build a contender team to 1yr deals. Usually, stars or borderline-stars come when they are guaranteed multi-year deals. Lakers will not be under the cap in 2015 unless if Kobe/Lakers are fine with rebuilding with 1yr deals next summer.

I won't touch the rest of what you said. As I initially said, I won't look at this from a Kobe fan perspective. I only want to look at it from Lakers fan perspective going forward. As a Kobe fan, I always thought he was a beast playing thru injuries and overcoming the naysayers. Then again, this is 36yr old Kobe we're talking about in 2013 coming off a MAJOR injury not a 28yr old Kobe in 2005 still in his prime.. If Lakers are paying Kobe off his past history, sorry that makes no sense to me. There is a saying in NFL that NOBODY is exempt from (not even the great Tom Brady) - "What have you done for me lately?" I think that applies here too.

Remember, Lakers success/failure is judged by championships. There is no middle-ground. And team over individual. Always.

[gts]

I don't think that a 3rd max deal in 2015 sounds realistic. Kobe's 25m + 2nd max at 20m = 45m. That leaves 14.5m (estimating ~59.5m cap in 2015, 58.6m this season). Not enough for 3rd max contract.



I reworded that part I wrote but the projected cap in 2015 is expected to be north of 65 million because of the way the TV money kicks in and natural growth of the league.

As to the rest anyone who knows me knows I've never been a Kobe fanboy. I've always wanted whats best for the Lakers and I'm more than comfortable with the way things are progressing/unfolding

[Lakers91]

Shame on Laker fans expecting Kobe to take a drastic paycut (as if leaving 25 million the next two years on the table is peanuts...lol) after all the years of Kobe proving doubters wrong. all the naysayers saying the Lakers will never win with Kobe as a second option.. Then 3 titles later they said Kobe would never make the playoffs without Shaq one trip to the finals and it's well ok he made the finals but he'll never win a title without a dominant big man.. 2 titles later and on and on it goes, never win a scoring title never win an MVP blah blah blah to now it's he'll never play again he's lucky to walk his career is over.

Never really had the ability to feel much shame; guilt or remorse :D

[Lakers91]

The Lakers had space to sign 2 max contracts next summer, even if Kobe took a 15 million dollar paycut as opposed to the 10 million dollar pay cut he took they still would only have space for 2 max contracts.

So Kobe is one of those max contract players for next summer, as he should be, clearly Lakers staff have seen enough of him in practice to know this is a realistic contract. It actually helps the Lakers to get this done now. If they had let him become a free agent then there would have been a 33 million dollar cap hold on the books and the Lakers would not have the space to sign another max contract next summer.

In 2015 the Lakers if they continue to play their cards the way the seem to be headed they will have the space for a third very large contract depends on where the cap is set but it's expected to be upwards of 66 million which could create space for a third max. Either way there's room for spending some decent money

Shame on Laker fans expecting Kobe to take a drastic paycut (as if leaving 25 million the next two years on the table is peanuts...lol) after all the years of Kobe proving doubters wrong. all the naysayers saying the Lakers will never win with Kobe as a second option.. Then 3 titles later they said Kobe would never make the playoffs without Shaq one trip to the finals and it's well ok he made the finals but he'll never win a title without a dominant big man.. 2 titles later and on and on it goes, never win a scoring title never win an MVP blah blah blah to now it's he'll never play again he's lucky to walk his career is over.

Damn people how many times does Kobe have to prove people wrong for some of you to get it through your skulls this guy is special?

You know that huge Time Warner TV contract that's going to allow the Lakers to go deep into the luxury tax after the reset to pay all these max contracts people want to collect? That contract was built on Kobe's back. those 5,000 dollar a game courtside seats, yeah he had a bit to do with that too... I read an article in Forbes last summer that he's generated close to half a billion dollars for the Lakers in his 17 yearsk

I slightly feel the need to add what I said before, off the court I would like the move to a degree, Kobe brings in far more revenue overall and to the brand than what he takes out, 43 million in comparison to 500 million or 1 billion or however much the Lakers eventual bottom line profit eventuates out to be. I would have simply rathered him take 12-15 and then use the extra 5 million or 10 million on other pieces, it doesn't need to be on a max player, just someone that can add something, 5 million could be enough to sign a good player or a valuable role player, assuming they do indeed sign another max contract.

Has he done a lot for the franchise? Of course, simply because I don't believe he should have got such a deal does not mean I believe all he has done for the Lakers should be wiped from the history books, of course not I simply don't particularly like it in comparison to what other players have done I.E the big 3 to play together taking pay cuts, Kobe did take a slight one I suppose but anyway.

I would have rathered to have 3 max or big contracts that does not involve Kobe, am I a Kobe fan? Not really I'm a Laker fan, am I thankful for what Kobe has done bringing 2 titles with Pau and 3 with being a vital cog led by Shaq most definitely, but I don't place him above the franchise or any for that matter, never have and never will. You don't have to like your teams best player or even have him as your favorite player to justify supporting your team but you do have to support them on the court of course.

I don't not value Kobe at all, I simply don't like investing so heavily in a player that is 36 years old or turning 36 not 25, not 28, not even 30, 36 at the time when so far he's done amazing just to be continually elite at an age where most are struggling to stay in the league or relevant at all, you are investing so much into a player that is coming off arguably one of the worst injuries a sporting athlete can have and at his age you make it sound like he will be the exact same Kobe? I simply don't think he will be, is that harsh? No I consider it realistic, you can't just act as if he's immortal or inhumane, he has an astonishing desire and will but he is still just that though human and mortal, his time in the league is finite, I don't believe you can invest so heavily and potentially waste another big contract on someone else by paying so much for someone who is 36 and coming off an achilles tear/rupture.

Special of course he is, he's a top 10 player ever, I simply don't want to just wipe it under the carpet or sweep under the rug to oh he's Kobe he might be 36 but an achilles injury won't be nothing to him his mentality will make up for such an injury, but will it? I don't care how much you put in some things have a lasting effect no matter who you are, Wilt Chamberlain the largest freak of nature the NBA has seen was never the same after a knee injury albeit technology has advanced, the point more so is that no matter how good you are you will not always be that good and injuries can play a role in it. I simply think it's too big of an injury to bank on the same Kobe or justify paying so much to him if it is for the Kobe that was when no one really has an idea on what Kobe will be like, he could put up 28-6-5 for all I know but it's a large risk to have to be stuck with such a contract if he is not the same Kobe Bryant that he was prior to the achilles injury or when he was younger. I apologise if it sounds disrespectful I expect that most will say it is but oh well I consider it realistic.

I simply don't believe he needed to ask for such a big contract, he doesn't have to prove anything to me, I'm a Laker fan one of hundreds of millions I'm no one special to him, I never said he had to prove anything to me? I just don't know if this large contract is worth it compared to if he had have signed a contract at 10 million or even 15 million I'd have been okay with, but I cannot justify based on the on court Kobe alone 23-25 million a year because of the uncertainty no matter if it's Kobe or not, an achilles injury no matter who you are and at that age you will not be the exact same (speaking as someone who has already had achilles issues at freaking 20 I'm not the same as I was at 17 or 18 before my achilles got hurt)

You seem to think I'm hating on what Kobe was? I think I'm more so disliking what he is being paid to be now, management seem to think it is the Kobe of old, at 30 or in his prime you could probably justify it he got two titles with Gasol for that contract well done money earnt definitely, but this will not be the same Kobe he will I hope still be great, but 23 million is more than virtually everyone in the league, maybe if he was still the pure and simple best in the game and younger I'd be happy with it but I believe this will hurt cap space that could have been used for pieces or that if we say max out Melo could hurt in negotiating another, it could be the difference between offering 20 million to a love in 2015-2016 or 10 million and he laughs and walks off (whether that is correct or not it's just an example that came off the top of my head).

When you add it all up I consider it a large risk to pay so much for someone no matter who they are when you are an elite athlete at any age coming off an achilles injury + at 36 then I consider it a bold but very risky move because it's not like if he's drastically worse they can just ship the contract off straight away. I also don't know how other stars will feel now about coming to the Lakers knowing Kobe is still being paid so much, how will Melo exactly feel or LeBron? Although both might have been low chances they in my mind are all but gone now, seeing Kobe paid so much they'd be almost like I can't compete with that no thanks.

Massive value off the court to the brand question marks what in the future he will be like on it, just think they will be paying 25 million fast forward 2 years to someone who will be 38 or turning 38? There won't be many at all making near that much money and the one that is no matter who you are players and athletes won't be the same at 38 or at least it's very rare that they will be.

As Blade put it although I don't entirely agree it is a bit of what have you done for me lately, it's not the past it's the present and future, and what he did most recently was snap his achilles after an age defying year, on a contract of 30 million odd, people thought it was amazing he was contributing so much at 35, now you think he can do similar a year older but more so off an achilles? It's a huge ask and a huge gamble as far as I'm concerned, whether Kobe or someone else sorry it's just my opinion on it whether it's blasphemous or not I'm not really bothered.

With all that said I hope he comes back phenomenally and my rant is all for nothing.

[DKLaker]

Never really had the ability to feel much shame; guilt or remorse :D

Great response!!!!! :oldlol: :oldlol: :oldlol: :bowdown: :cheers:

[DKLaker]

I've now turned to wondering whether Jim Buss is as dumb as his decisions make out or whether he's just slightly below average in intelligence instead but at this stage I'm still going towards moron. Well he's born into money so it doesn't really matter, still having fun with dad's money and corporation/organisation with no idea how to do it himself.

I know quite a bit about Jimmy, have known about him for a very long time and I warned everyone that he is a complete moron. Jeanie was the only one capable of effectively running the team......but no, we got stuck with silver spoon, daddy's money spoiled brat.

I'm quite certain that Rob (Kobe's agent) pushed to get this deal done right now......WHY you may ask? Because if Kobe were to re-injure himself or have a career ending injury he may never see another dime. It was brilliant work by a crafty agent.......easy pickings considering Buss has the IQ of a flea.
Rob probably told Jimmy if the deal wasn't done now that Kobe would insist on the full amount. Now Jimmy thinks he's a genius for negotiating a pay cut :banghead:

No way a responsible owner does this deal before seeing him play AT LEAST half the season.......no way!

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

I know quite a bit about Jimmy, have known about him for a very long time and I warned everyone that he is a complete moron. Jeanie was the only one capable of effectively running the team......but no, we got stuck with silver spoon, daddy's money spoiled brat.

I'm quite certain that Rob (Kobe's agent) pushed to get this deal done right now......WHY you may ask? Because if Kobe were to re-injure himself or have a career ending injury he may never see another dime. It was brilliant work by a crafty agent.......easy pickings considering Buss has the IQ of a flea.
Rob probably told Jimmy if the deal wasn't done now that Kobe would insist on the full amount. Now Jimmy thinks he's a genius for negotiating a pay cut :banghead:

No way a responsible owner does this deal before seeing him play AT LEAST half the season.......no way!

Lol there goes dk with age old tune...jimmy blah blah...jeanie blah blah

Which were the 2 max players the lakers were going to get in FA? U thought lebron was coming and bringing along his band with him?

Last yr proves that even with 4 hof its not guranteed to win in the nba... Take health & luck..: remember pathetic ray allens travelling 3 last yr?
Other then Lebron Which player in the league sells tickets and is prime ticket?

The guy gts wrote it write...if they dont get lebron and melo...in the same time burn bridges with kobe, who the fcuk is going to pay $5000 for their seats?

They just had 1st non sellout game... Go figure

[Lakers91]

Great response!!!!! :oldlol: :oldlol: :oldlol: :bowdown: :cheers:

:oldlol: all in good fun, just kind of had the urge to do a smart a** reply but I respect his opinion I don't have to agree with it which in my other reply I don't but "I do not agree with what you have to say, but I'll defend to the death your right to say it." haha, I stand by what I said I don't expect everyone to agree with it (to be honest I'm more surprised that so far most posters have so far which is annoying I prefer to go against the social norm :roll: )

[Lakers91]

I know quite a bit about Jimmy, have known about him for a very long time and I warned everyone that he is a complete moron. Jeanie was the only one capable of effectively running the team......but no, we got stuck with silver spoon, daddy's money spoiled brat.

I'm quite certain that Rob (Kobe's agent) pushed to get this deal done right now......WHY you may ask? Because if Kobe were to re-injure himself or have a career ending injury he may never see another dime. It was brilliant work by a crafty agent.......easy pickings considering Buss has the IQ of a flea.
Rob probably told Jimmy if the deal wasn't done now that Kobe would insist on the full amount. Now Jimmy thinks he's a genius for negotiating a pay cut :banghead:

No way a responsible owner does this deal before seeing him play AT LEAST half the season.......no way!

I truly hope that even the most narcissistic of people wouldn't consider themself a genius for something like this although I suppose if you look at it from a business only perspective maybe it's a minor victory but really the best thing for a basketball brand is championships and with this deal the hopes of them are less in my opinion, Surely he wouldn't think that haha? The above would make sense from Kobe and his manager's perspective not that Kobe really needs it but the more money Kobe loses the more his manager loses especially obviously player agent fees (some of the manager fees for transfers in the EPL or "soccer" are at times in the millions for managers to allow their players to sign off on them massive money with big stars agents). If so the next "win" for the franchise will be getting D'Antoni to take a pay cut from 4 million a year to a million a year over 4 years, that will be such a win...:bowdown: :cry:

I wouldn't like to see Kobe leave but I also don't like to see so much money go to one person, granted he deserves money for what he brings in marketing and also he deserves a lot for people coming to watch the Lakers and a lot watching him but it's more that he doesn't really even need it, now granted if I was an employee and my employee said I'm making x hundred million off you in revenue but I only want to offer you this amount in payment for it I wouldn't be that happy but I mean surely it's not that hard to cut more off than that it's barely 7 million less off a pay cut in comparison now far older than when he signed it and after a significant injury, not that I hate Kobe or want him to it's just I think no matter who you are it's too much for one player, or maybe they are just going to let him expire 2 years from now when Durant comes onto the market (I can dream :D ). It was a risk because if Kobe had left then Lakers are without a star, but that wouldn't have been the end where would he have gone to after saying he's a Laker for life for one but more so it's the opportunity to start a team from scratch with an entire cap space to work with had they played hard ball and he left or retired anyway, I just think they shouldn't have been so eager before he has played and chalked it all up to because it's Kobe Bryant, they didn't treat past players like it as soon as their value was looking shaky or like they might not be as good as they were, they went yet for some reason management has found some sentiment and loyalty to a player (marketing and revenue :P)

[Frank Foley]

I stand by what I said I don't expect everyone to agree with it (to be honest I'm more surprised that so far most posters have so far which is annoying I prefer to go against the social norm :roll: )

Trust me, you're not the only one to feel this way. I personally agree with you--I'm just too depressed to really write much about it. I know it's a polarizing issue, that I might be asked to defend my position, and really delving into the whys and whats is pretty much the last thing I wanna do right now. Luckily, writers like Zach Lowe have already verbalized what I'm feeling, minus the whining and the swearing.

Lots of swearing.

[Lakers91]

Trust me, you're not the only one to feel this way. I personally agree with you--I'm just too depressed to really write much about it. I know it's a polarizing issue, that I might be asked to defend my position, and really delving into the whys and whats is pretty much the last thing I wanna do right now. Luckily, writers like Zach Lowe have already verbalized what I'm feeling, minus the whining and the swearing.

Lots of swearing.

Thanks for the reply, when I woke up this morning (live in Melbourne) got the update Lakers sign Kobe to extension, I was kind of surprised with mixed feelings I thought maybe it's good or bad who knows how he will come back from injury, then didn't even think about the price because it was just extension and I didn't have time to look so I just assumed ideally 10-15 million and in an even more ideal world where cap space was preserved to form a potentially star studded team (although last year it didn't work primarily due to the older team similar to the nets this year), it said paycut on my notification so I smiled then a few hours later finally looked and saw the amount and I just thought :facepalm even if it is Kobe I still couldn't help but just think why, I get the loyalty what he means to the franchise, the revenue he brings and everything but as a fan you care about championships and in my opinion you should the franchise before any player if you are a fan of a team and not a player and I just didn't think for on court purposes it was or is a good deal in the long run or salary cap wise for two years, even if Kobe comes back fine he will still be getting paid 25 million dollars at 38 years of age, it's mind boggling but I suppose it is "Hollywood" or Los Angeles afterall, where the freaking beyond belief happens. For me in terms of a future team it was basically once Pau and Kobe expire and ideally re-sign for less can actually build a team that can contend not just older pieces like last time, now might have to do a similar thing, Kobe + a younger player say it's Melo, Kobe + Melo and? Whatever else then your pretty much either basically trading for other pieces with what? Or you are signing veterans to the minimum instead of having ideally two or three good players (which could have been + Kobe) it's Kobe + maybe not even Melo and who knows what else. :rant :banghead:

[DKLaker]

Lol there goes dk with age old tune...jimmy blah blah...jeanie blah blah

Which were the 2 max players the lakers were going to get in FA? U thought lebron was coming and bringing along his band with him?

Last yr proves that even with 4 hof its not guranteed to win in the nba... Take health & luck..: remember pathetic ray allens travelling 3 last yr?
Other then Lebron Which player in the league sells tickets and is prime ticket?

The guy gts wrote it write...if they dont get lebron and melo...in the same time burn bridges with kobe, who the fcuk is going to pay $5000 for their seats?

They just had 1st non sellout game... Go figure

Age old tune is called THE TRUTH :cheers: :oldlol: Sorry if you don't like it.

2 Max players? That is a narrow perspective you have, how about 1 max and 2 extra 2nd tier players for the extra money Kobe took.
We could've gotten 2 solid 2nd tier FAs for the extra money....get it?

It's not about only stars or only scrubs.

I wish there were no salary cap at all, then I'd be saying give Kobe $30 million....lol.

I'll tell you this right now, the worst thing that could happen to this franchise this year is to make the playoffs......we absolutely have to get a shot at a franchise saving top draft pick.

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

Age old tune is called THE TRUTH :cheers: :oldlol: Sorry if you don't like it.

2 Max players? That is a narrow perspective you have, how about 1 max and 2 extra 2nd tier players for the extra money Kobe took.
We could've gotten 2 solid 2nd tier FAs for the extra money....get it?

It's not about only stars or only scrubs.

I wish there were no salary cap at all, then I'd be saying give Kobe $30 million....lol.

I'll tell you this right now, the worst thing that could happen to this franchise this year is to make the playoffs......we absolutely have to get a shot at a franchise saving top draft pick.

So much for ur broken record of jeanie over jim

Read this:
http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/story/_/id/10038633/los-angeles-lakers-jim-buss-kobe-bryant-extension-right-thing-do

In LA stars shine bright and sell tickets... Not avg scrubs...

U wanted kobe to return at vet min? Looks like it..

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

Age old tune is called THE TRUTH :cheers: :oldlol: Sorry if you don't like it.

2 Max players? That is a narrow perspective you have, how about 1 max and 2 extra 2nd tier players for the extra money Kobe took.
We could've gotten 2 solid 2nd tier FAs for the extra money....get it?

It's not about only stars or only scrubs.

I wish there were no salary cap at all, then I'd be saying give Kobe $30 million....lol.

I'll tell you this right now, the worst thing that could happen to this franchise this year is to make the playoffs......we absolutely have to get a shot at a franchise saving top draft pick.

So much for ur broken record of jeanie over jim

Read this:
http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/story/_/id/10038633/los-angeles-lakers-jim-buss-kobe-bryant-extension-right-thing-do

In LA stars shine bright and sell tickets... Not avg scrubs...

U wanted kobe to return at vet min? Looks like it..

There is lot more to this extension then bb:

Loyalty
1 billion dollar franchise going down drain
Tv deal
5000 a pop courtside seats

lakers main business is their team... They cant make money fielding a lottery team or avg player team..

[DKLaker]

So much for ur broken record of jeanie over jim

Read this:
http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/nba/story/_/id/10038633/los-angeles-lakers-jim-buss-kobe-bryant-extension-right-thing-do

In LA stars shine bright and sell tickets... Not avg scrubs...

U wanted kobe to return at vet min? Looks like it..

There is lot more to this extension then bb:

Loyalty
1 billion dollar franchise going down drain
Tv deal
5000 a pop courtside seats

lakers main business is their team... They cant make money fielding a lottery team or avg player team..


I'm sorry but I don't understand your point here? All I have heard from everyone today, on the phone, on the radio, on TV is how once again Jimmy has lost his grip on reality and screwed up. Loyalty????? LMFAO, remember how they fired everyone when the lockout hit? All those loyal employees combined wouldn't have made more than $200k during that time......yet oh....they paid Kobe double the going rate.......YES, DOUBLE according to all sources, there was not going to be a bidding war over an old Kobe, no more being offered than $10 million by any other team, so if w rode it out he wouldn't have refused $10-15m. Jimmy once again bid against himself, just as he did by signing Kaman for $3 million when he wouldn't have gotten more that $1 million. Don't trust a word out of Jimmy's mouth, he tried to blame not signing Phil on Jerry and then said Jeanie was ok with it....Jeanie said he was a liar and she was torn up by it......yet some folks had believed the moron :facepalm Just like some thought No D Toni could actually coach :facepalm

Kobe was going to be around next year no matter what so there was no need to worry about losing fans.....a Kobe at a cheaper price and top FA signing plus a top draft pick and then ring chasers could have = Championship, but it is looking dark now.....not dead tho.

[bladefd]

Kobe said Lakers were the ones to make the FIRST OFFER at $24mill a year ($48m over 2 years). Need I say another word??? Is there anyone on planet Earth that can force me to elaborate on this?

edit: I apologize to Kobe Bryant for even blaming him for a minute that he was a greedy diva scumbag for forcing this deal. My target has ENTIRELY SHIFTED 100% to the Lakers organization. Another major blunder. I hope the Lakers do not become the Rams of NBA - an organization thrown into worthlessness due to horrendous ownership making massive blunders after blunders. I know it won't ultimately matter much, but I'm not buying another Lakers merchandise as long as these idiotic blunders continue.

[Lakers91]

Kobe said Lakers were the ones to make the FIRST OFFER at $24mill a year ($48m over 2 years). Need I say another word??? Is there anyone on planet Earth that can force me to elaborate on this?

edit: I apologize to Kobe Bryant for even blaming him for a minute that he was a greedy diva scumbag for forcing this deal. My target has ENTIRELY SHIFTED 100% to the Lakers organization. Another major blunder. I hope the Lakers do not become the Rams of NBA - an organization thrown into worthlessness due to horrendous ownership making massive blunders after blunders. I know it won't ultimately matter much, but I'm not buying another Lakers merchandise as long as these idiotic blunders continue.

Not the best start to the Jim Buss reign (personally I hope it doesn't last very long but I think it will :( ) but I don't think seeing as he's the owner he can be overthrown or is he the CEO which would require a board to overthrow, what exactly is the ownership structure or business structure of the Lakers/can he be removed with a majority I.E the other Buss relatives etc?

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

I'm sorry but I don't understand your point here? All I have heard from everyone today, on the phone, on the radio, on TV is how once again Jimmy has lost his grip on reality and screwed up. Loyalty????? LMFAO, remember how they fired everyone when the lockout hit? All those loyal employees combined wouldn't have made more than $200k during that time......yet oh....they paid Kobe double the going rate.......YES, DOUBLE according to all sources, there was not going to be a bidding war over an old Kobe, no more being offered than $10 million by any other team, so if w rode it out he wouldn't have refused $10-15m. Jimmy once again bid against himself, just as he did by signing Kaman for $3 million when he wouldn't have gotten more that $1 million. Don't trust a word out of Jimmy's mouth, he tried to blame not signing Phil on Jerry and then said Jeanie was ok with it....Jeanie said he was a liar and she was torn up by it......yet some folks had believed the moron :facepalm Just like some thought No D Toni could actually coach :facepalm

Kobe was going to be around next year no matter what so there was no need to worry about losing fans.....a Kobe at a cheaper price and top FA signing plus a top draft pick and then ring chasers could have = Championship, but it is looking dark now.....not dead tho.

how the F would you know? nobody knew....Kobe is as egoist as they get...so please keep that kobe would be around next year to yourself

I am a lakers fan 1st and then Kobe...I like this extension for both side...the same...it was business + basketball decision...

[DKLaker]

how the F would you know? nobody knew....Kobe is as egoist as they get...so please keep that kobe would be around next year to yourself

I am a lakers fan 1st and then Kobe...I like this extension for both side...the same...it was business + basketball decision...

Nobody was going to offer him anywhere near that type of money, this is no secret.....so YES, I know. Kobe was definitely going to be around, he wants to retire having only played for the Lakers. Even Jimmy said he paid double the going rate.....did you miss that? I suggest you listen to the Lakers station and hear what every expert is saying.....it's the same thing I am saying.
It was clearly a dumb decision for the franchise but I really don't blame Kobe, he knows 'Antoni will never win no matter who they get.

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

Nobody was going to offer him anywhere near that type of money, this is no secret.....so YES, I know. Kobe was definitely going to be around, he wants to retire having only played for the Lakers. Even dumb Jimmy said he paid double the going rate.....did you miss that? I suggest you listen to the Lakers station and hear what every expert is saying.....it's the same thing I am saying.
It was clearly a dumb decision for the franchise but I really don't blame Kobe, he knows 'Antoni will never win no matter who they get.

fcuk it dude....no point in arguing with you as u keep freaking bringing the same points....

go crazy calling people names..

[DKLaker]

fcuk it dude....no point in arguing with you as u keep freaking bringing the same points....

go crazy calling people names..

I'm not calling you any names dude so unless Jimmy or 'Antoni are your daddy or something, there is no reason to get upset and take it personally. I happen to know quite a lot about the Buss family, I am qualified to speak on them.
I never met 'Antoni but it doesn't take a genius to know he can't coach, but it does take a moron to give him a 4 year contract :oldlol:
Lighten up bro, this is an open forum and we all are going to have different opinions....can't get mad, just have to respect everyone's right to say what they feel.....even kkinchen (Luv ya bro :cheers: ) :oldlol:

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

I'm not calling you any names dude so unless Jimmy or 'Antoni are your daddy or something, there is no reason to get upset and take it personally. I happen to know quite a lot about the Buss family, I am qualified to speak on them.
I never met 'Antoni but it doesn't take a genius to know he can't coach, but it does take a moron to give him a 4 year contract :oldlol:
Lighten up bro, this is an open forum and we all are going to have different opinions....can't get mad, just have to respect everyone's right to say what they feel.....even kkinchen (Luv ya bro :cheers: ) :oldlol:

Exactly u bi!ching about every decision that lakers make is getting old and running quality posters out of this forum

& fcuk it ....u r not qualified to speak on the buss family...only they can speak on them

But let ur fcuking b!tchin tune continue ... It is for last 3 years

[dd24]

The Lakers have made a ton of bad decisions lately. It's shown in the teams performance. I think it's fine for any of the fans to voice complaints about that. Lakers_Kobe_Fan, you should realize by now that your opinion is in a very small minority about the Kobe signing. There are very few that feel this was a good deal. In any sport (whether it's basketball, baseball, or football) giving a player who is 36 and way past their prime a contract that is tops in the sport has never worked well for that team. I think everybody wanted Kobe back, and it's definitely not entirely his fault for taking a deal that he probably figured he wouldn't be offered. You have to admit that on a lot of levels there isn't a lot of this deal that makes sense when trying to put together a championship roster (rather than just putting butts in the seats). The Lakers are going to have a tough rebuilding process now. I feel like this is really what put the Knicks in the hole they are in. They started with 'antoni whose system won't win a championship. They overpaid a guy past his prime (Amare) and went out and got another max guy (Melo) and tried to surround them with shooters. Then they realized that system wouldn't work and they fired 'antoni. The Lakers are going to overpay a guy past his prime (Kobe), attempt to get another max guy (maybe Melo lol), and surround them with shooters. Then 'antoni will eventually be fired. It really doesn't leave a lot of excitement for the future. All we can hope is some kind of blockbuster trade can be made.

[DKLaker]

Exactly u bi!ching about every decision that lakers make is getting old and running quality posters out of this forum

& fcuk it ....u r not qualified to speak on the buss family...only they can speak on them

But let ur fcuking b!tchin tune continue ... It is for last 3 years


Oh really, running people out of here.....lmao, comical to say the least.
Funny that I have been right, so if someone doesn't want to hear the truth....too bad. Reality of the bad moves has smacked even most clueless people in the face. As Jack said "You can't handle the truth!!!!!" LOL.
You want to come into an open forum for what......so that everyone can agree with you???? If not you start cursing at them? I have seen you go on long rants more than once about the same thing, you like anyone have your pet peeves and guess what......I respect your right to say whatever you want as many times as you want to. No one is forcing you to read what I say, you can just skip ahead. I'm not going to track you down and force you to read my comments. Not even the missing Lakerfreak....our great mod can do that...lol. Bottom line is that I have always treated you with respect and class, as we should all treat each other. Those who don't get this should start their own "Homer, kiss the Lakers Front Office" site where they can kick anyone out who disagrees with them.

As for the Buss family......I have been so tempted to say what I know firsthand.....but, i'm not going there. Just know that I told everyone this was going to happen many years ago, because I knew them....I will say no more details.

[JJ81]

:rockon:

[bladefd]

I think Skip Bayless reads these forums. His argument today was almost word-for-word plagiarized off this thread. Just read first 2 pages and listen to Skip on first take today. Stephen A Smith counters with what Kobe did in his prime 5+ years ago and how dominant he once was. Unbelievable. People think it is perfectly good to pay a 36yr old athlete coming off a HUGE injury without playing a SINGLE GAME based simply on his past prime. This is something the troll konex, who happens to be a Kobe-fanboy, would say on general boards. :lol

Whoever is pointing at the 3 billion tv deal is forgetting that there is a tightening cap lock in place. If there was no cap limit, my argument would be fruitless. Unfortunately there is A CAP OF ~62 MILLION DOLLARS.Once you get over the salary cap, you are limited to the mid-level exception, low-level exception and veteran's minimum then the luxury tax comes. The luxury tax rate is $4.75 for every dollar over cap for a repeater rate (which Lakers are) and it will increase by $0.50 for every $5 million over cap.** If you're 30 mill over the cap, do the math. Are Lakers willing to spend $250m a season?? There are also many other costs that go into running a team - coaching staff, federal+state taxes, Staples center costs millions to run yearly, other staff members, etc etc. Remember, the TV deal runs over a number of years so it is not 3 billion every year.

Ah well, all the media people and most people I know have said this deal was horrendous and attacked Jimmy Buss and Lakers front-office for starting negotiations off at 23m a year. The very idea that they started negotiations at that says ALL I need it to say.

** http://www.cbafaq.com/salarycap.htm#Q21

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

Oh really, running people out of here.....lmao, comical to say the least.
Funny that I have been right, so if someone doesn't want to hear the truth....too bad. Reality of the bad moves has smacked even most clueless people in the face. As Jack said "You can't handle the truth!!!!!" LOL.
You want to come into an open forum for what......so that everyone can agree with you???? If not you start cursing at them? I have seen you go on long rants more than once about the same thing, you like anyone have your pet peeves and guess what......I respect your right to say whatever you want as many times as you want to. No one is forcing you to read what I say, you can just skip ahead. I'm not going to track you down and force you to read my comments. Not even the missing Lakerfreak....our great mod can do that...lol. Bottom line is that I have always treated you with respect and class, as we should all treat each other. Those who don't get this should start their own "Homer, kiss the Lakers Front Office" site where they can kick anyone out who disagrees with them.

As for the Buss family......I have been so tempted to say what I know firsthand.....but, i'm not going there. Just know that I told everyone this was going to happen many years ago, because I knew them....I will say no more details.

good just shut ur mouth for once

[DKLaker]

good just shut ur mouth for once



You are extremely rude.....and forget it, i will keep saying what I want......nothing you can ever do about it :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

I bet you scream at your TV and the radio because no one agrees with you on this.....You just can't handle the truth, must be a kid.

[DKLaker]

I think Skip Bayless reads these forums. His argument today was almost word-for-word plagiarized off this thread. Just read first 2 pages and listen to Skip on first take today. Stephen A Smith counters with what Kobe did in his prime 5+ years ago and how dominant he once was. Unbelievable. People think it is perfectly good to pay a 36yr old athlete coming off a HUGE injury without playing a SINGLE GAME based simply on his past prime. This is something the troll konex, who happens to be a Kobe-fanboy, would say on general boards. :lol

Whoever is pointing at the 3 billion tv deal is forgetting that there is a tightening cap lock in place. If there was no cap limit, my argument would be fruitless. Unfortunately there is A CAP OF ~62 MILLION DOLLARS.Once you get over the salary cap, you are limited to the mid-level exception, low-level exception and veteran's minimum then the luxury tax comes. The luxury tax rate is $4.75 for every dollar over cap for a repeater rate (which Lakers are) and it will increase by $0.50 for every $5 million over cap.** If you're 30 mill over the cap, do the math. Are Lakers willing to spend $250m a season?? There are also many other costs that go into running a team - coaching staff, federal+state taxes, Staples center costs millions to run yearly, other staff members, etc etc. Remember, the TV deal runs over a number of years so it is not 3 billion every year.

Ah well, all the media people and most people I know have said this deal was horrendous and attacked Jimmy Buss and Lakers front-office for starting negotiations off at 23m a year. The very idea that they started negotiations at that says ALL I need it to say.

** http://www.cbafaq.com/salarycap.htm#Q21


:applause: :cheers: :applause:

[$LakerGold]

Oh really, running people out of here.....lmao, comical to say the least.
Funny that I have been right, so if someone doesn't want to hear the truth....too bad. Reality of the bad moves has smacked even most clueless people in the face. As Jack said "You can't handle the truth!!!!!" LOL.
You want to come into an open forum for what......so that everyone can agree with you???? If not you start cursing at them? I have seen you go on long rants more than once about the same thing, you like anyone have your pet peeves and guess what......I respect your right to say whatever you want as many times as you want to. No one is forcing you to read what I say, you can just skip ahead. I'm not going to track you down and force you to read my comments. Not even the missing Lakerfreak....our great mod can do that...lol. Bottom line is that I have always treated you with respect and class, as we should all treat each other. Those who don't get this should start their own "Homer, kiss the Lakers Front Office" site where they can kick anyone out who disagrees with them.

As for the Buss family......I have been so tempted to say what I know firsthand.....but, i'm not going there. Just know that I told everyone this was going to happen many years ago, because I knew them....I will say no more details.

DK, we love you, but you gotta learn how to chill sometimes. Voice out your opinion about a specific thing for 3 to 5 times (maybe?), & then let it go. NOTHING WILL EVER HAPPEN even if you constantly bitch about it. It's not like the Buss family comes here & reads our post or anything like that. If you have connections, then hell, please give Jim Buss an earful, we'd really appreciate that. But as far as posts in ISH, it's not gonna make a difference. You can always logically criticize without throwing a jab, feel me? lol & I think that's what's bothering LKF.

WE LOVE YOU DK, REMEMBER THAT, YOU SILLY BITCH. :D

[Lakers91]

I think Skip Bayless reads these forums. His argument today was almost word-for-word plagiarized off this thread. Just read first 2 pages and listen to Skip on first take today. Stephen A Smith counters with what Kobe did in his prime 5+ years ago and how dominant he once was. Unbelievable. People think it is perfectly good to pay a 36yr old athlete coming off a HUGE injury without playing a SINGLE GAME based simply on his past prime. This is something the troll konex, who happens to be a Kobe-fanboy, would say on general boards. :lol

He has to get some of his trolling ideas from somewhere so it's definitely possible.

[DKLaker]

DK, we love you, but you gotta learn how to chill sometimes. Voice out your opinion about a specific thing for 3 to 5 times (maybe?), & then let it go. NOTHING WILL EVER HAPPEN even if you constantly bitch about it. It's not like the Buss family comes here & reads our post or anything like that. If you have connections, then hell, please give Jim Buss an earful, we'd really appreciate that. But as far as posts in ISH, it's not gonna make a difference. You can always logically criticize without throwing a jab, feel me? lol & I think that's what's bothering LKF.

WE LOVE YOU DK, REMEMBER THAT, YOU SILLY BITCH. :D

Bro, In case I never told you.....I'm old, and old people repeat themselves and sometimes forget they already said it :oldlol: I have earned the right to do it without having to listen to any young punks (Not You) thinking that they are the ISH police, especially when I can point out things that they themselves have repeated 10 times on here. Worse yet, I don't go cursing or name calling a fellow Lakers fan, that would be disrespectful.....and trust me, I know how to call people names :oldlol: Young dudes have to learn how to disagree with class and respect.

Silly Bitch :oldlol: .........oh the stuff I let you get away with since I know you're joking :roll: :roll: :roll:
(Should be Old Silly Bitch)

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

You are extremely rude.....and forget it, i will keep saying what I want......nothing you can ever do about it :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll:

I bet you scream at your TV and the radio because no one agrees with you on this.....You just can't handle the truth, must be a kid.

Lol sure... I m not writing emails to others like u did last time to me

Well sure for screaming at TV... Lol nobody listens or gives a F about u so u r on internet forum saying u got 2 nice cars, coaching job that ur players dony care

So u r here in public forum fake showing off to people

Well continue with ur BS b!tching about jim buss, mitch and the lakers... On a lakers forum

Dont expect my reply

[dd24]

I don't know why anybody would take anything personal on this forum. Just read whatever is posted and get over it. This is the best forum (by far) out of any of the teams, and everyone can see that there's passionate fans about this team. If DK posts something you don't like, you don't have to make it personal. If someone posts something that's obviously not of popular opinion (Lakers_Kobe_Fan for example) of course people are going to say otherwise. It doesn't mean we all don't like each other. We're all on the same side. Everybody has the same goal for the same team. Quit taking everything so personal!!!!

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

I don't know why anybody would take anything personal on this forum. Just read whatever is posted and get over it. This is the best forum (by far) out of any of the teams, and everyone can see that there's passionate fans about this team. If DK posts something you don't like, you don't have to make it personal. If someone posts something that's obviously not of popular opinion (Lakers_Kobe_Fan for example) of course people are going to say otherwise. It doesn't mean we all don't like each other. We're all on the same side. Everybody has the same goal for the same team. Quit taking everything so personal!!!!

I agree with u but i am here since 2006

It really ruins for everybody else when u sing the same tone for 3 yrs

Nobody is taking it personally but i think it dilutes any discussion on this forum when no matter what topic u blame same person

[tamaraw08]

The Lakers have made a ton of bad decisions lately. It's shown in the teams performance. I think it's fine for any of the fans to voice complaints about that. Lakers_Kobe_Fan, you should realize by now that your opinion is in a very small minority about the Kobe signing. There are very few that feel this was a good deal. In any sport (whether it's basketball, baseball, or football) giving a player who is 36 and way past their prime a contract that is tops in the sport has never worked well for that team. I think everybody wanted Kobe back, and it's definitely not entirely his fault for taking a deal that he probably figured he wouldn't be offered. You have to admit that on a lot of levels there isn't a lot of this deal that makes sense when trying to put together a championship roster (rather than just putting butts in the seats). The Lakers are going to have a tough rebuilding process now. I feel like this is really what put the Knicks in the hole they are in. They started with 'antoni whose system won't win a championship. They overpaid a guy past his prime (Amare) and went out and got another max guy (Melo) and tried to surround them with shooters. Then they realized that system wouldn't work and they fired 'antoni. The Lakers are going to overpay a guy past his prime (Kobe), attempt to get another max guy (maybe Melo lol), and surround them with shooters. Then 'antoni will eventually be fired. It really doesn't leave a lot of excitement for the future. All we can hope is some kind of blockbuster trade can be made.

A ton? I don't like the huge contract they offered Kobe and the MDA hiring was horrible.
But what else?
They could have gotten CP3, if not for Stern stopping it.
They traded Odom who was obviously out of it.
They traded an injury prone center (who has failed to put together consecutive quality games)who is on a verge of retiring.
They acquired cheap FA's mostly for 1 year contracts.

[bladefd]

A ton? I don't like the huge contract they offered Kobe and the MDA hiring was horrible.
But what else?
They could have gotten CP3, if not for Stern stopping it.
They traded Odom who was obviously out of it.
They traded an injury prone center (who has failed to put together consecutive quality games)who is on a verge of retiring.
They acquired cheap FA's mostly for 1 year contracts.

-Hiring Mike Brown 1wk after Phil retired over Rick Adelman and others - huge "WTF?"
-Firing Brown 5 games into season. I didn't want Brown to coach LAL, but WHY would you fire him 5 games in? Entire off-season wasted. You fire between seasons and not 5 games in. Then you go get MDA. Wow.
-Phil Jackson blunder.. they call him @ 2am to tell him they going w/ MDA to stick it in his face
-Nash contract was very questionable, but I will let it go since it was just 1yr extra. We also lost a few picks to Suns over this deal.
-Previous Kobe deal that ended up with him at $30mill this year - since this season ended up being a rebuilding wash, they got off on this one
-Losing Dwight; Dr Buss would have found a way to convince Dwight if he were alive. Desperation billboards all over LA desperately begging Dwight to stay. Beneath Lakers' dignity. NOT how Dr Buss would do it.

What else am I forgetting? Jimmy Buss took over in what? 2011

[DKLaker]

I agree with u but i am here since 2006

It really ruins for everybody else when u sing the same tone for 3 yrs

Nobody is taking it personally but i think it dilutes any discussion on this forum when no matter what topic u blame same person


LMAO.....Hitler & Manson killed a helluva lot of people, should we just blame them for 1 death and move on???? :facepalm
If Jimmy keeps on screwing up over and over again as bladefd had to remind those folks with very short memory, then guess what.....I will talk about it.

If Jodie Meeks shoots 3 for 16 every night, guess what......you will talk about it more than once.
God knows how many times we had to hear you complain about Dwight's lack of post moves last year......I was tired of it but respected your right to vent, so I never once complained about it. I respect the rights of others and don't get personal. In the end we are all Lakers fans and want the same conclusion to every season....if possible = A Championship.....so how can I hate on you or anyone else on here....get it?

[DKLaker]

Lol sure... I m not writing emails to others like u did last time to me

Well sure for screaming at TV... Lol nobody listens or gives a F about u so u r on internet forum saying u got 2 nice cars, coaching job that ur players dony care

So u r here in public forum fake showing off to people

Well continue with ur BS b!tching about jim buss, mitch and the lakers... On a lakers forum

Dont expect my reply

Was that a crack pipe response? Writing e-mails? WTF are you talking about? Funny because I was told you kept crying about me and asked to have me banned....lmfao. I got messages to prove it.
I could care less what you say or do. I'm a grown man, I handle my own sh!t.
You got crazy personal and I handled it MYSELF. I told you at that time what I think of you. I don't need to do that again, you get the point. I think you should spend more time on education issues than worrying about what I say about Jimmy and No D Toni. Bottom line is that I don't give a rats @ss what you say, nor should you get butthurt over anything I say.....I do not talk about you, nor do I come on here to talk about you....move on and talk about basketball.....after all, this is a BASKETBALL FORUM, and you need to have respect for ALL of the Lakers fans on here. I apologize to all others for wasting their time reading this, but again....once again you insisted on starting some garbage with me and I handle my business myself.

[DKLaker]

-Hiring Mike Brown 1wk after Phil retired over Rick Adelman and others - huge "WTF?"
-Firing Brown 5 games into season. I didn't want Brown to coach LAL, but WHY would you fire him 5 games in? Entire off-season wasted. You fire between seasons and not 5 games in. Then you go get MDA. Wow.
-Phil Jackson blunder.. they call him @ 2am to tell him they going w/ MDA to stick it in his face
-Nash contract was very questionable, but I will let it go since it was just 1yr extra. We also lost a few picks to Suns over this deal.
-Previous Kobe deal that ended up with him at $30mill this year - since this season ended up being a rebuilding wash, they got off on this one
-Losing Dwight; Dr Buss would have found a way to convince Dwight if he were alive. Desperation billboards all over LA desperately begging Dwight to stay. Beneath Lakers' dignity. NOT how Dr Buss would do it.

What else am I forgetting? Jimmy Buss took over in what? 2011

Some of these guys must be sleeping like Rip Van Winkle, I think they missed everything that has been going on????? Weird huh????

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

Was that a crack pipe response? Writing e-mails? WTF are you talking about? Funny because I was told you kept crying about me and asked to have me banned....lmfao. I got messages to prove it.
I could care less what you say or do. I'm a grown man, I handle my own sh!t.
You got crazy personal and I handled it MYSELF. I told you at that time what I think of you. I don't need to do that again, you get the point. I think you should spend more time on education issues than worrying about what I say about Jimmy and No D Toni. Bottom line is that I don't give a rats @ss what you say, nor should you get butthurt over anything I say.....I do not talk about you, nor do I come on here to talk about you....move on and talk about basketball.....after all, this is a BASKETBALL FORUM, and you need to have respect for ALL of the Lakers fans on here. I apologize to all others for wasting their time reading this, but again....once again you insisted on starting some garbage with me and I handle my business myself.

lol never did i care for u or ur posting...let alone ask the mods to ban u...

lol ....just follow my advice on what i asked u to do couple of posts back...

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

A ton? I don't like the huge contract they offered Kobe and the MDA hiring was horrible.
But what else?
They could have gotten CP3, if not for Stern stopping it.
They traded Odom who was obviously out of it.
They traded an injury prone center (who has failed to put together consecutive quality games)who is on a verge of retiring.
They acquired cheap FA's mostly for 1 year contracts.

but but...they hired mike brown....but but...they hired MDA? lol...seriously...

getting almost CP3 + 10mil cap space: mitch is genius...jim buss is retard...

getting Choward for Bynum who played ZERO games last yr: mitch is genius...jim buss is retard...

trading LO for cap space + 1st : mitch is genius...jim buss is retard...

trading for nash for that cap space : mitch is genius...jim buss is retard.. i know with nash getting injured it didnt work out....nobody would have knew it..

trading D Fish for J Hill: mitch is genius...jim buss is retard.

trading walton & his 2yr contract for sessions:mitch is genius...jim buss is retard.

signing all these young guys this yr: mitch is genius...jim buss is retard.

lol the list goes on...

people dont even understand that Kobe's cap hold would have been more then 32mil......

[DKLaker]

lol never did i care for u or ur posting...let alone ask the mods to ban u...

lol ....just follow my advice on what i asked u to do couple of posts back...

Who in their right mind would follow any advice you could give????

Remember....Education is a good thing.

[DKLaker]

-Hiring Mike Brown 1wk after Phil retired over Rick Adelman and others - huge "WTF?"
-Firing Brown 5 games into season. I didn't want Brown to coach LAL, but WHY would you fire him 5 games in? Entire off-season wasted. You fire between seasons and not 5 games in. Then you go get MDA. Wow.
-Phil Jackson blunder.. they call him @ 2am to tell him they going w/ MDA to stick it in his face
-Nash contract was very questionable, but I will let it go since it was just 1yr extra. We also lost a few picks to Suns over this deal.
-Previous Kobe deal that ended up with him at $30mill this year - since this season ended up being a rebuilding wash, they got off on this one
-Losing Dwight; Dr Buss would have found a way to convince Dwight if he were alive. Desperation billboards all over LA desperately begging Dwight to stay. Beneath Lakers' dignity. NOT how Dr Buss would do it.

What else am I forgetting? Jimmy Buss took over in what? 2011

The homers aren't listening to intelligence.

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

Who in their right mind would follow any advice you could give????

Remember....Education is a good thing.

exactly...u obviously are not in a right state of mind ...thats why i am asking...do it...

[DKLaker]

exactly...u obviously are not in a right state of mind ...thats why i am asking...do it...

Blah, Blah, Blah......get a life dude. This is an open basketball forum where people can voice their differing opinions about basketball.....the key being DIFFERING. If all you want is agreement then lock yourself in a closet and talk to yourself....lol.
Seriously, you need to stop your childish antics. Not a single person logs onto here to hear you or me argue with each other or anyone else.
Personal attacks are a waste of everyone's time......I request that you keep it to basketball and let go of the garbage....OK!

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

Blah, Blah, Blah......get a life dude. This is an open basketball forum where people can voice their differing opinions about basketball.....the key being DIFFERING. If all you want is agreement then lock yourself in a closet and talk to yourself....lol.
Seriously, you need to stop your childish antics. Not a single person logs onto here to hear you or me argue with each other or anyone else.
Personal attacks are a waste of everyone's time......I request that you keep it to basketball and let go of the garbage....OK!

now i value opinions more then just 1 recycled opinion....

with that said...I came here to say the same thing...this is a good forum...lets cut the crap out ...forget about others but nobody wants to login and be insulted by the other person....so i am going to be a bigger person at heart and let it go... :)

I am OUT....

[DKLaker]

now i value opinions more then just 1 recycled opinion....

with that said...I came here to say the same thing...this is a good forum...lets cut the crap out ...forget about others but nobody wants to login and be insulted by the other person....so i am going to be a bigger person at heart and let it go... :)

I am OUT....


Cool, thanks for your cooperation :cheers:

[LA Lakers]

Things Jim Buss has done: Got us Chris Paul which would have been the greatest back court in NBA history, NBA vetoed the trade for "basketball reasons", swapped Bynum for Dwight, which any owner would have done at the time, Dwight stunk and couldn't hack being in LA and playing in Kobes shadow. This Kobe deal is a retirement package. A very generous retirement package for the Lakers best employee over the last 20 years. This insures that there will not be a Jordan playing on the Wizards again. Kobe, like Magic, retires a Laker. This is also political, it sends a message to other superstars around the league that if you play in LA and kick everyones ass for decades and bring multiple titles to the franchise, you will get paid what you earned. I don't get why people are losing their minds over this? Did anyone thin k Kobe would take a huge paycut? Hes gonna say I got 5 rings homie, first ballot hall of famer, one of the 5 all time leading scorers, Multiple Akll Star, and a regular season MVP. Come on, get real. Its the Lakers, its The Buss Family and its Kobe Bean Bryant. Do the math. It comes out to around 50 million. Also can we stop with the "we could have signed 2 other max players" argument. Miami signed 3 max contract players in their primes. That will never happen again. I can almost guarantee it.

[LA Lakers]

Also forgot to mention that a good 3 quarters of Lakers fanbase are rabid die hard Kobe fans, so no matter what, they are tied to Kobe for life. I'm guessing Dr. Buss probably had something in his will or dying wish to keep Kobe at all costs. Don't forget Dr. Buss signed Magic to a 25 year 25 million dollar contract or something crazy like that. This family doesn't care about luxury tax or cap space or anything of that nature.

[SpecialQue]

I think this was a great move by the Lakers. In addition to ensuring more sell-out games, it also shows players that the Lakers take care of their stars, which has to be attractive to future free agents. Especially following the Dwightmare.

[DKLaker]

I think this was a great move by the Lakers. In addition to ensuring more sell-out games, it also shows players that the Lakers take care of their stars, which has to be attractive to future free agents. Especially following the Dwightmare.


To the guys who think this was a good move......how much do you think Kobe could've gotten from any other team?

So, should we now be loyal to Pau and give him say $15 million?

Personally, I don't buy into this being attractive to future free agents, I think it shows weakness, like we'll overpay declining players, this hampers the ability to keep a team strong. If you look at the Spurs and New England Patriots, they let you walk if you want too much money.....yet every year they are at the top.
I am in no way, shape or form suggesting we should have let Kobe walk, just negotiated better for the long term future of the franchise.

In thinking about this stuff, I remembered how (A hundred years ago...lol) the Lakers let one of their all-time greats, Gail Goodrich walk as a free agent. I was pissed off, he was one of my faves.....but because of that and the league compensation rules, we received the pick that became Magic Johnson.....just something to think about.

[magictricked]

To the guys who think this was a good move......how much do you think Kobe could've gotten from any other team?

So, should we now be loyal to Pau and give him say $15 million?

Personally, I don't buy into this being attractive to future free agents, I think it shows weakness, like we'll overpay declining players, this hampers the ability to keep a team strong. If you look at the Spurs and New England Patriots, they let you walk if you want too much money.....yet every year they are at the top.
I am in no way, shape or form suggesting we should have let Kobe walk, just negotiated better for the long term future of the franchise.

In thinking about this stuff, I remembered how (A hundred years ago...lol) the Lakers let one of their all-time greats, Gail Goodrich walk as a free agent. I was pissed off, he was one of my faves.....but because of that and the league compensation rules, we received the pick that became Magic Johnson.....just something to think about.

Gail Goodrich was under a different owner. Cooke won one title in 15 years of ownership despite multiple trips to the championship. Buss won 10 titles since owning the team.

Giving Kobe the contract is the way Buss runs the team. He always took care of his players in different ways. Turiaf had his medical expenses paid by Buss despite not even being under contract, giving Magic that long term contract and later a piece of the franchise.

Walt Hazard being on the payroll until he died two years ago despite having a stroke in the mid 1990s and never actually contributing to the team afterward.

Rudy T relapsed while coaching the Lakers, stayed on the payroll as a scout

Bill Sharman life time contract from the 1970s

Lakers PR man Bob Steiner's daughter is crippled and a big Lakers fan, she has her own luxury box because Buss says so.

Those are just a few examples but there's many any more

This current Lakers ownership is known for creating a "Lakers Family" beyond anything ever seen in sports so don't confuse how they run things while winning 10 titles to previous Laker regimes or other teams in other sports that pale in comparison to Buss family success

[DKLaker]

Gail Goodrich was under a different owner. Cooke won one title in 15 years of ownership despite multiple trips to the championship. Buss won 10 titles since owning the team.

Giving Kobe the contract is the way Buss runs the team. He always took care of his players in different ways. Turiaf had his medical expenses paid by Buss despite not even being under contract, giving Magic that long term contract and later a piece of the franchise.

Walt Hazard being on the payroll until he died two years ago despite having a stroke in the mid 1990s and never actually contributing to the team afterward.

Rudy T relapsed while coaching the Lakers, stayed on the payroll as a scout

Bill Sharman life time contract from the 1970s

Lakers PR man Bob Steiner's daughter is crippled and a big Lakers fan, she has her own luxury box because Buss says so.

Those are just a few examples but there's many any more

This current Lakers ownership is known for creating a "Lakers Family" beyond anything ever seen in sports so don't confuse how they run things while winning 10 titles to previous Laker regimes or other teams in other sports that pale in comparison to Buss family success


Thanks for your input, and you make some very good points :cheers:

I will say that using the name Buss does not truly apply because this is Jimmy Buss NOT Jerry Buss, and Jimmy hasn't earned it, not even close.
Like comparing Michael Jordan's kids to him :oldlol: :oldlol: :oldlol:
Some college years ago had the brothers of Hakeem and Bird....they sucked.
There are millions of similar examples in the business world.

I don't think it was loyal to fire all the loyal employees before the start of the lockout in order to save a few bucks, there were some who had worked for the team for 20 years....that was Jimmy's doing.

[crisoner]

I'm on board with the YAY crowd on this now.
Could Kobe have taken less? Yes.
But this is the Laker franchise being the Laker franchise.
And for everything Kobe has done for us it will be well worth it to see him retire a Laker and hit other milestones as a Laker.
We can still offer one more max contract to a high profile free agent.
I'm happy with the bench we have right now. They play hard period.
I hope we can keep Pau next year and get him for cheap. But if he leaves no worries.

Fear not Laker Faithful....we will be back on top soon. SHOCK THE WORLD!!!

[DKLaker]

I'm on board with the YAY crowd on this now.
Could Kobe have taken less? Yes.
But this is the Laker franchise being the Laker franchise.
And for everything Kobe has done for us it will be well worth it to see him retire a Laker and hit other milestones as a Laker.
We can still offer one more max contract to a high profile free agent.
I'm happy with the bench we have right now. They play hard period.
I hope we can keep Pau next year and get him for cheap. But if he leaves no worries.

Fear not Laker Faithful....we will be back on top soon. SHOCK THE WORLD!!!

Of course I hope you are 100% right :cheers:

[tamaraw08]

Gail Goodrich was under a different owner. Cooke won one title in 15 years of ownership despite multiple trips to the championship. Buss won 10 titles since owning the team.

Giving Kobe the contract is the way Buss runs the team. He always took care of his players in different ways. Turiaf had his medical expenses paid by Buss despite not even being under contract, giving Magic that long term contract and later a piece of the franchise.

Walt Hazard being on the payroll until he died two years ago despite having a stroke in the mid 1990s and never actually contributing to the team afterward.

Rudy T relapsed while coaching the Lakers, stayed on the payroll as a scout

Bill Sharman life time contract from the 1970s

Lakers PR man Bob Steiner's daughter is crippled and a big Lakers fan, she has her own luxury box because Buss says so.

Those are just a few examples but there's many any more

This current Lakers ownership is known for creating a "Lakers Family" beyond anything ever seen in sports so don't confuse how they run things while winning 10 titles to previous Laker regimes or other teams in other sports that pale in comparison to Buss family success
how I wish there's another way like instead of paying Kobe 40+ mil for 2 years, why not 20 Mil then hire him as a coaching consultant from 2016-2026 at 2 mil/yr? In that way, team doesn't get strapped by cap rules, then Kobe gets his steady $ in the next 12 years.

[Lakers_Kobe_Fan]

how I wish there's another way like instead of paying Kobe 40+ mil for 2 years, why not 20 Mil then hire him as a coaching consultant from 2016-2026 at 2 mil/yr? In that way, team doesn't get strapped by cap rules, then Kobe gets his steady $ in the next 12 years.

I would have honestly preferred 50mil/3yrs so the last yr he retires and still gets paid

[gts]

I would have honestly preferred 50mil/3yrs so the last yr he retires and still gets paidThey were avoiding the over 36 rule being imposed on the cap

[$LakerGold]

Any more thoughts? Stickied until Sunday.

[DKLaker]

Any more thoughts? Stickied until Sunday.

I doubt any opinions have changed.....so I for one will let history be the judge.

[DKLaker]

Of course it didn't take long for history to start speaking did it?

I wouldn't have done a deal for more than 12 million per year with Kobe until AFTER the season, after he showed what he had left in the tank....but Nooooo,
Jimmy the Genius got fleeced by Kobe's agent Rob in a legendary move that will get him more clients. What if....god forbid.....Kobe goes Steve Nash on us for the next 2+ years and we get nothing from him.......this is why you WAIT!!!! :facepalm

[bladefd]

Of course it didn't take long for history to start speaking did it?

I wouldn't have done a deal for more than 12 million per year with Kobe until AFTER the season, after he showed what he had left in the tank....but Nooooo,
Jimmy the Genius got fleeced by Kobe's agent Rob in a legendary move that will get him more clients. What if....god forbid.....Kobe goes Steve Nash on us for the next 2+ years and we get nothing from him.......this is why you WAIT!!!! :facepalm

I hate to say "I told you so" but I still strongly believe the Lakers rushed the deal. Nobody could have predicted Kobe would get hurt again, but what was the point of rushing in to sign the deal?? *Crickets chirping*


1) Kobe hasn't played a single game off a HUGE injury. Why would you agree to a blockbuster extension at this point in time? At least wait till he plays a few weeks. You want to see what sort of shape he is in and how his leg is.

3) Kobe is 36. This makes Kobe the HIGHEST PAID player in nba next year. More than LeBron/Durant/CP3/Love/Wade/Dwight/etc. Is he still in his prime? No. Market value is important as we go into next summer. Nobody would even offer Kobe ANYTHING close to what Lakers offered.

I ask myself: how much would teams offer to pay Kobe now after this latest fracture that will sideline him until February right off the Achilles tear?

btw - In the games Kobe has played so far, he was not looking like the old regular Kobe that Mitch said he saw in practice before the extension deal. Maybe I need to get my eyes checked - maybe Mitch was right, Kobe WAS the black Mamba and dominated the 6 games. We won 4 of them and Kobe did average 27 PPG, right?

[dd24]

While I still do agree that was a horrible contract there was one thing on ESPN this morning that does make a little bit of sense. The Lakers need to have a big time star on the team to sell tickets. This was evident when the finally weren't selling out games when Kobe was injured. Also the tv ratings were down. As soon as Kobe was back the Lakers were sold out and the ratings were up. They need Kobe and from a business perspective he does make them a ton more than that contract. The thing that sucks is it hurts the cap a ton too, and they won't be able to build a contender.

[Lakers91]

While I still do agree that was a horrible contract there was one thing on ESPN this morning that does make a little bit of sense. The Lakers need to have a big time star on the team to sell tickets. This was evident when the finally weren't selling out games when Kobe was injured. Also the tv ratings were down. As soon as Kobe was back the Lakers were sold out and the ratings were up. They need Kobe and from a business perspective he does make them a ton more than that contract. The thing that sucks is it hurts the cap a ton too, and they won't be able to build a contender.

I don't have as much a problem with the contract itself (Too much for me) but it's more so that it wasn't even negotiated on, maybe if Kobe had went to management and said I want 30 million and the only way to get him to stay and you thought he was serious in leaving he's not bluffing he will go then I can maybe see offering him it, it's not that bad for revenue wise but I still believe the best thing for a basketball franchise as a business viability wise is winning championships look at how much larger the brand of the Heat/Miami is after 2 titles and signing LeBron etc due to basically clearing the books, anyway off track it's more so that it wasn't even negotiations to get him to stay, it was just here's the contract $22 million large chunk of coin here it is, I mean I can't really blame Kobe for taking it I mean even if your rich your told coming off an achilles injury a potentially career threatening injury here's 22 million and 23 million over 2 years your taking it haha, it's just more so that the Lakers didn't try and negotiate it was just almost like oh were too in awe to negotiate with Kobe here's 22 million, I just think they should have at least negotiated, at least said we want to try and bring in Melo or someone else like Love in 15-16 and potentially a 3rd close to max player and pieces, try and win a ring here's a I don't know 7-10 million contract and work your way up from there and only if he is definitely leaving do you offer such a contract again in my opinion. Was it a terrible move business wise? No not terrible certainly on court wise and cap wise it was very bad in my opinion but from a business perspective it wasn't a terrible move but it wasn't very good either but they need to sell out, tickets etc but at the expense now of building a true championship team.

[DKLaker]

While I still do agree that was a horrible contract there was one thing on ESPN this morning that does make a little bit of sense. The Lakers need to have a big time star on the team to sell tickets. This was evident when the finally weren't selling out games when Kobe was injured. Also the tv ratings were down. As soon as Kobe was back the Lakers were sold out and the ratings were up. They need Kobe and from a business perspective he does make them a ton more than that contract. The thing that sucks is it hurts the cap a ton too, and they won't be able to build a contender.

Kobe wasn't going to go anywhere period unless we really were going to pay him $5 million less than the next team was offering and that wasn't going to happen. Refusing to deal now was not going to effect ticket sales in any way.

A smart owner would wait to see what he was paying for, let him play out the season....or at least if he started dropping 30 point games then you give in a bit.
I said from the beginning that Kobe's agent rushed the deal because he knew that if Kobe got another big injury he may never get a deal over 8 million at his age. It was a brilliant move from an agent standpoint a horrible error for an owner.

[Lakers91]

Kobe wasn't going to go anywhere period unless we really were going to pay him $5 million less than the next team was offering and that wasn't going to happen. Refusing to deal now was not going to effect ticket sales in any way.

A smart owner would wait to see what he was paying for, let him play out the season....or at least if he started dropping 30 point games then you give in a bit.
I said from the beginning that Kobe's agent rushed the deal because he knew that if Kobe got another big injury he may never get a deal over 8 million at his age. It was a brilliant move from an agent standpoint a horrible error for an owner.

Do you think had the Lakers offered him around 10-12 million do you think he'd have accepted instead of 22 or would he have rejected it/do you think there was any chance he was leaving (I don't really)?

[DKLaker]

Do you think had the Lakers offered him around 10-12 million do you think he'd have accepted instead of 22 or would he have rejected it/do you think there was any chance he was leaving (I don't really)?

Kobe may have rejected it at the time but if we waited til the season ended and he saw the market for him wasn't there for any more than that kind of lower money, he would've had no choice but to accept.
Jimmy got destroyed in the battle of wits :facepalm

[Lakers91]

Kobe may have rejected it at the time but if we waited til the season ended and he saw the market for him wasn't there for any more than that kind of lower money, he would've had no choice but to accept.
Jimmy got destroyed in the battle of wits :facepalm

I agree, I just think it would have been smarter to wait, I don't see the benefit of offering it early, maybe if he was going to leave you get in first in best dressed but he wasn't going to leave he'd already said that, maybe if it was 08 Kobe after throwing a tantrum but this is a 34 year old veteran who loves the Lakers and the feeling is largely mutual, unless they had totally tried to rip him off and said were giving you 2 mil no more then he may have left but anything above 10 I think he'd have accepted anyway. Wouldn't you have to have wits to participate in a batlte of them :oldlol: ?

[Lakers91]

Kobe may have rejected it at the time but if we waited til the season ended and he saw the market for him wasn't there for any more than that kind of lower money, he would've had no choice but to accept.
Jimmy got destroyed in the battle of wits :facepalm

I don't think Jim Buss qualifies :roll: , I think organisations should implement when they are doing the nepotistic thing at least IQ test the person you'll pass the reigns to (one bad thing Jerry did), he should have done the Japanese style adoption (in Japan for CEO's who either don't want to pass of businesses to either a daughter or their son isn't intelligent enough etc they will adopt a senior employee as their son, it's not as common nowadays but still quite common, I think it's Toyota or something they have had 4 straight adult adopted CEO's in Japan just each CEO would adopt a qualified employee as their son and pass the reigns to them), Jerry could have adopted Mitch :D

[DKLaker]

I don't think Jim Buss qualifies :roll: , I think organisations should implement when they are doing the nepotistic thing at least IQ test the person you'll pass the reigns to (one bad thing Jerry did), he should have done the Japanese style adoption (in Japan for CEO's who either don't want to pass of businesses to either a daughter or their son isn't intelligent enough etc they will adopt a senior employee as their son, it's not as common nowadays but still quite common, I think it's Toyota or something they have had 4 straight adult adopted CEO's in Japan just each CEO would adopt a qualified employee as their son and pass the reigns to them), Jerry could have adopted Mitch :D


Haha, something has to happen to get rid of Jimmy, putting him in charge was the worst mistake of Jerry's life....he must be turning over in his grave right now.