Kobe’s taking a break from basketball, eh? The greats always “retire” and then return again for one last hurrah. And, Kobe’s one of the greats. It ain’t easy to be old and walk away into a foreign life.
Here’s my guess about the next few years…
The Lakers are going to court Kevin Durant. Management loves to build around mature talent and Durant’s the top candidate. Whether or not Durant signs with the Lakers, the franchise is going to struggle.
In the meantime, Kobe’s going to linger around the fringes of basketball. We’ll see him quoted in interviews on how the Lakers are under-performing. He’ll show up for an occasional post-game analysis. But, Kobe’s going to find that he just doesn’t have the personality and desire to be another media commentator.
So…when Kobe’s around 40 years old, the Lakers are going to make a 1-year offer to re-sign him under the guise of being mostly a mentor and secondary coach. He’ll be limited to, at most, 13 minutes of play per game. His primary role will be to advise the new Lakers on his methods of practice. And he’ll give the mentor role a shot for once…because it’s his last hurrah.
Y’all heard it here first. Kobe’s a Laker again around 2018. I’ll bet your house on it.