According to a report by SI.com, Kobe Bryant has decided not to terminate the final two years of his contract and will remain a Los Angeles Laker instead of becoming a free agent.
Now the Lakers and Bryant’s agent will negotiate a contract extension. If they somehow cannot agree, he would earn $23 million next season and could opt out next June.
However, Bryant has spent his entire 13-year career with the team, winning four NBA championships and on June 19 he said, “I’m not going anywhere. I know I ain’t going nowhere, so it’s just a waste of our breaths just talking about it.”
Bryant has urged the Lakers to bring back unrestricted free agent forwards Trevor Ariza and Lamar Odom, who played key roles in the team’s recent run to its 15th NBA title.
Bryant will make a guaranteed $47.8 million over the next two years and could earn another $90 million with an extension. As the SI.com article notes, the Lakers can now turn their attention on retaining Ariza and Odom.
Check back for TSR NBA guru John Paulsen’s take on this subject later.
