Kobe Bryant had one of the most illustrious careers with the Los Angeles Lakers, spending his entire 20-season career with the purple and gold. However, there were times during his tenure that he looked like he could be on the move.
There were certainly times of contention between Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers. As with any relationship, there will be bumps in the road that need to be worked out, especially one that spans 20 years in sports.
At least once in his career, Kobe Bryant was looking for a change of scenery. He wanted to get traded and negotiations with other teams were held. During a recent appearance on Pardon My Take on Barstool Sports, NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski discussed some of the biggest trades in NBA history that didn’t happen.
Wojnarowski then detailed just how close a deal centered around the Black Mamba got. According to Wojnarowski, via NBA Retweet on X, the framework of a deal with the Detroit Pistons was done, with Tayshaun Prince and Richard Hamilton as the pieces going back to Los Angeles with draft picks.
It wasn’t a deal that the Los Angeles Lakers wanted to do, but they were doing what their star player wanted. But, the deal fell through after Kobe Bryant met with Dr. Jerry Buss and talked things over, re-committing to the franchise.
Imagine how different the NBA landscape would have been had the Los Angeles Lakers and Pistons gone through with the trade. Kobe Bryant would go on to win two more championships with the franchise, cementing his legacy as one of the best players ever.
Detroit, on the other hand, has been stuck in purgatory. The last time they won a playoff series was in 2008, which was right around the time the trade talks were happening with the Los Angeles Lakers.
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