Report: Lakers Nearly Traded Kobe Bryant to Mavs

Kobe Bryant didn’t have his best summer in 2007. The situation between him and LA was far from convenient. The Los Angeles Lakers were unable to get past the first round of the NBA playoffs for three straight seasons. What happened next? The Black Mamba demanded a trade. The Los Angeles Lakers nearly traded Kobe, and it was the biggest thing that summer.

Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban revealed that his team had reached a trade agreement with the Lakers. It was a good deal for the Mavs, and they almost brought Kobe to Texas.

“I thought we had traded for Kobe. I worked it out with Jerry Buss and we had agreed upon it… He was ready to come to us.”

The Lakers nearly traded Kobe because he wanted out

Shaquille O’Neal joined the Miami Heat in 2004. LA had a lot of struggles following his departure. The Lakers failed to make the playoffs in 2004-05 season. In the next two seasons, the Lakers suffered a defeat in the first round of each postseason.

Kobe was a Laker at the beginning of the 2007-08 season. Many thought that the Lakers would go through another failure.

Well, Andrew Bynum became quite a name, and the Lakers got All-Star Pau Gasol at midseason. The Lakers became an elite team, and things looked really well for the team.

LA made the NBA Finals in 2008, and lost in six games to the Boston Celtics. Well, they did win titles in the next few seasons.

If Kobe ended up playing with the Mavs, NBA fans would have witnessed a different flow of events. NBA teams would have played differently. Maybe Kobe would have won a different number of games. But, the Black Mamba remained loyal to the Lakers. He spent his entire career as a Lakers player. He was proudly wearing his purple and gold uniform.

Kobe won five titles with the Lakers. He was one of the most competitive players the NBA has ever seen. The Black Mamba lost his life in a helicopter crash outside LA, and NBA players are doing their best to continue his legacy. LA won a title in honor of the great Kobe.