Two Kobe Bryant trade scenarios
By Chad Ford
ESPN.com
More than two weeks after Kobe Bryant made his trade request to the Lakers, he still wants out, says his agent.
"Kobe's position remains unchanged," Bryant's agent Rob Pelinka told ESPN.com on Friday. "Kobe would like to be moved."
In fact, Kobe met with owner Jerry Buss on Friday and once again voiced his desire to be traded.
The question remains, will the Lakers move him? The head says no. But the scuttlebutt suggests otherwise. A number of GMs and agents around the league seem convinced that he's going to be traded.
The Lakers had strong interest in trading for Jermaine O'Neal before Kobe's trade request. But that interest has cooled since then. Why? The Lakers have been saying that the Pacers' asking price (Lamar Odom, Andrew Bynum and the No. 19 pick) is too high. But maybe it's because there's no need to bring in a big-money player like O'Neal and gut the team if Kobe isn't going to be around.
From what I can gather, the Lakers would have two conditions to meet in any Kobe Bryant trade:
1. They want to send him to the Eastern Conference.
2. They need a star player back in return.
The Eastern Conference preference would potentially rule out such places as Phoenix and Golden State, both of which have significant assets and interest.
And, of course, the lack of available stars would rule out just about every team in the East, including the Knicks.
Some East teams lack the star power to bid directly for Bryant. Others have stars that aren't going anywhere.
For instance, the Cavs and Heat have superstars LeBron James and Dwyane Wade, but both are untouchable. Ditto, apparently, for Dwight Howard in Orlando.
Chicago, from what I hear, is Bryant's first preference, and he might be willing to waive his no-trade clause to play there. While the Bulls have lots of assets, such as Ben Gordon, Luol Deng and the No. 9 pick in the draft, that package lacks true star power.
Based on my conversations with various sources around the league, I see two intriguing possibilities if the Lakers are looking for an Eastern Conference star -- the Wizards' Gilbert Arenas and the Celtics' Paul Pierce.
Scenario 1
Arenas isn't Kobe, in talent or stardom. But he is from Los Angeles, he's more than three years younger, he has great magnetism and, like Bryant, he can fill the seats.
With Arenas saying he'll opt out of his contract with Washington next summer, the Wizards might want to start looking at ways to move him now before running the risk of losing him for nothing.
Here's one potential trade, with Bryant headed to Chicago and Arenas to L.A.
The Bulls would send Gordon, Tyrus Thomas and P.J. Brown (sign-and-trade) to Washington, and the No. 9 pick to L.A.
The Lakers would send Bryant to Chicago.
The Wizards would send Arenas and Etan Thomas to L.A.
Under that scenario, which couldn't be completed until mid-July, the Lakers would get a star player (Arenas) and a high draft pick (No. 9) which, I'm told, they'd use to get Yi Jianlian if he's still on the board.
The Bulls would be paying a very high price for Kobe -- two high lottery picks and this year's No. 9. But the Bulls would keep Deng, something they desperately want to do. On the other hand, they still wouldn't have a low-post scorer.
The Wizards would avoid having to break the bank for Arenas next summer, would bring in two very talented young players and would get some serious cap relief down the road.
Scenario 2
A similar trade could work if the Lakers were willing to substitute Boston and Paul Pierce. While Pierce is almost 30 years old, I'm told the Lakers like him -- and he's from L.A. too.
The Bulls would send Gordon, Tyrus Thomas and P.J. Brown (sign-and-trade) to Boston, and the No. 9 pick to L.A.
The Lakers would send Bryant to Chicago.
The Celtics would send Pierce to L.A.
That deal would make the Celtics even younger than they already are, but it would also give them plenty of assets to continue making deals.
Chad Ford covers the NBA for ESPN Insider.
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6/16/2007 11:12 PM
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