Man this is a good debate going on here....Kobe Bryant is as much to blame for the collapse of the Lakers as anything.....Now I believe Jerry Buss decided to make him the franchise player and asked him did he want to keep Shaq and he said no. Even LA wan't big enough for both of them. But, say what you want about the big fella, but all he did was go to Miami and win a title. Name the last time an NBA team won a title without a legit "man in the middle," as the Bulls pa announcer used to say. Even the Bulls although they weren't superstars, had legit centers that filled that role...they weren't 25 or 30 feet away from the bucket looking to drain a 3 pointer. Cartwright, Longley, Wennington, Perdue....on their own, they were mediocre at best, but they understood their role....take up space, get a couple of rebounds a game, use all your fouls up, and let Dennis Rodman do all the work under the basket....before Rodman it was Grant. So where does that leave the Lakers? They need a big man....and as talented as I think he is, I don't think KG is the answer. Kobe's ego won't allow another player to float along the perimeter. They need a guy that can give them 20 and 10 night in and night out and do it from 5 to 8 feet away....
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