NBA GM says Kobe Bryant’s trade value is ‘zero’
By Bryan Rose
When Kobe Bryant finally hangs up his sneakers, he’ll go down as one of the greatest to ever play in the NBA.
More from Los Angeles Lakers
- NBA rumors: Hawks trade candidate, Sixers miss out, Lakers almost lose Reaves
- Predicting NBA’s Christmas Day Schedule: Lakers, Warriors highlight slate of postseason rematches
- Bronny James collapses at practice, taken to ICU with cardiac arrest
- NBA Rumors: Lakers nearing another savvy minimum signing
- Lakers projected lineup and rotations heading into 2023-24 season
But if the Los Angeles Lakers wanted to traded him currently? They’d struggle to find a willing trade partner. That’s the word from an unnamed NBA GM who recently told Chris Ballard of Sports Illustrated that the trade value of the Los Angeles Lakers franchise talent is ‘zero’.
"There is not much hope on the horizon, either. Seven months after he ruptured his left Achilles tendon—and three weeks before he fractured his left kneecap—Kobe Bryant signed a $48.5 million, two-year deal. The contract, widely derided as the worst in the game, makes Bryant nearly impossible to move, even were the Lakers to try. Asked about Kobe’s value on the market, one GM answers definitively: “Zero. Look at that number. Who takes him?”"
The admission that nobody would take Kobe Bryant is more of a suggestion of his absurdly large salary than it is of Bryant’s game. If Kobe was on a respectable contract, possibly even $10 million dollars a season and the Los Angeles Lakers wanted to trade him, they’d certainly get some offers. They may not be anything special, but they could move him.
His contract however makes trading him nearly impossible. That said there may be a few scenarios around the league in which a team would entertain trading for Bryant (Josh Smith?) in his current state, though Kobe himself would understandably never sign off on such nor would the Lakers ever attempt a deal.