Looks like next season will be the last in Kobe Bryant’s legendary NBA career.
“He has indicated to me that this is it,” Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak told SiriusXM NBA radio on Thursday.
Bryant, 36, will make $25 million next season, more than any other player in the league, in the second year of his two-year extension.
Earlier this year, Bryant denied a report by The Hollywood Reporter that next year would be his last: “It wouldn’t be true to who I’ve been my entire career to do a farewell tour,” he said in an on-air interview with ESPN.
Kupchak said Thursday that he wasn’t sure Bryant would change his mind in that regard — “It’s kind of up to the player, if they want to do something like that” — but noted that would also take away options for Bryant should he change his mind and decide to play another year.
Kupchak had previously gone on record saying he expected the 2015-2016 season to the last of Bryant’s storied career, one that stretches all the way back to 1996.
Over the course of his time in the NBA, Bryant has racked up seven finals appearance and five championships. He ranks No. 3 for most points in NBA history. In recent seasons, the star player has battled a number of injuries.
source: huffingtonpost.com By Maxwell Strachan
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