Kobe Bryant’s Retirement Imminent After Series of Struggles in His Game

Against the Warriors, Bryant shot 1-of-14 from the field and scored four points.

The former MVP played his last full season three years ago and averaged over 27 points, but multiple injuries and age have combined to sap Bryant’s once-jaw-dropping athleticism, creating a predictable series of pull-up jumpers and fadeaways in the post. “He tells me when he is exhausted and he tells me when he’s not exhausted”.

“I just think about basketball sometimes and what could help us out of this funk and what could make us better”, Scott said. Because there are so many talented teams in this league and for us to just be playing at a high level right now, that’s what we’re anxious about. “It kind of got the better of me”.

Watching the Lakers is not easy, which is confirmed by the 2-12 start to the season, and Bryant is shouldering a large chunk of the blame following an air-ball filled performance in Oakland the night before.

When asked how much input and guidance he provided Bryant through his current struggles, Scott said, “I’m trying to let him find it on himself”. When Kobe Bryant is given free reign to use up 28.5% of the team’s possessions while tying the lowest assist per-100 possessions he’s averaged since his third season in the league, you are going to have a passing problem. “I think he’ll be the first to tell you that”, Los Angeles coach Byron Scott told reporters following his team’s 111-77 defeat. But the immediate question for Scott is should Bryant also play Sunday against IN at home after playing Saturday night at Portland?

In addition, Complex’s Russ Bengtson sent an open letter to Bryant to call for his retirement. “I don’t mean at the end of the season, I mean right now”, Bengtson wrote. Smith added in his rant that he doesn’t blame Bryant for his downfall, but “Father Time” and the Lakers franchise.

It is not a one-man show for the Lakers, so Kobe wants to clear the air in their team. “So there’s obviously still milestones that we can continue to go after, but you go after them by how you approach each day”.

“The one thing this [Warriors] team couldn’t do on a daily basis against us, that they’re doing against everybody else, is go small”, Scott said.