NBA: Kobe: Only “special” players match the Lakers

Kobe Bryant was asked by ESPN on Friday whether he would help the Los Angeles Lakers in summer to recruit potential free agents to LA. to recruit them. The future Hall-of-Famer had a very clear answer to this question.

“The thing about this franchise is that you don’t really need recruitment to convince someone,”says Bryant,”It takes a special person to want to play here and accept the pressure that comes from it. The pressure to follow in the footsteps of Magic[Johnson], me or our dynasty, can only be withstood by a special player.”

For Bryant, who spent his entire 20-year NBA career with the Lakers, this is an exclusion criterion:”If I have to convince you to come here and continue this legacy, then you’re not the person for it.”

The Lakers have won the second most titles of all NBA teams with 16 championships, the last one in 2010 with Bryant as final MVP. All in all, the Mamba won five titles, just like Johnson, who is now team president.

“If you’re here, it’s all about titles. Nothing else matters,”says Bryant,”You don’t have to like each other, but you come to practice every day and play hard, you focus on winning. Then everything will be fine.”

And if you don’t do that, he was asked,”Then you can go play somewhere else. That’s fine, too. It takes a certain personality to stand here. The Lakers stand for excellence. No division banners are hung here. We do not honor all players, but those who are hall-of-fame-material. This is about a certain standard,”Bryant explained.