Thursday Evening Updates

The Lakers had another off day today (besides practice of course) before heading to Phoenix for tomorrow nights game with the Suns.

The biggest news surrounding the Lakers still seems to be Magic Johnson's comments in the TNT post game studio show. He is catching some flak for what he said, but I agree with him. Magic said that "[Laker Management] are going to have to make a decision about Kobe in the next week or two. It’s got to come to a head, you’ve either got to trade him or come out and say you’re going to keep him".

Magic is correct. The whole Kobe issue is just too distracting for this team. Past Laker teams have been able to handle distraction alright, and Coach Jackson is a master at keeping the players focused, but this team is just too young. I think all the uncertainty is going to affect their focus and their play.

However, I don't think it would be in the best interests of the front office to definitively declare anything about Kobe- whether they want to keep him or trade him. It is best for them to be quiet about it, and explore their options. So I do not expect them to announce they are taking Kobe off the trade block-even if it would be best for the team.

I also do not believe that Kobe will be traded any time soon. The only possible destinations that have been mentioned for him to go to are: Chicago, Phoenix, Dallas, New York, and Washington. Chicago GM John Paxson announced todaythat they are not going to trade for Kobe, Washington dismissed the rumours before the season began, and Mark Cuban recently took Dallas out of the running.

So that realistically leaves only Phoenix and New York. Its really hard to fathom the Lakers and Suns helping each other out with a trade, when they are in the same conference, and division. So that leaves only New York. The Knicks are such a mess that the Lakers shouldn't even risk talking to James Dolan and Isiah Thomas for fear that some of their idiocy might rub off onto them. Realistically the Knicks don't have enough to put together a serious package to interest the Lakers.

So with all things considered, I would be surprised to see Kobe going anywhere in the near future. And as I do not see the Laker management making any kind of loyalty announcement, it looks as if the Lakers and Kobe are going to be stuck in this sort of "limbo" for the next few months. Buckle your seatbelts Lakers fans, its going to be a wild ride.