http://www.sacbee.com/351/story/147526.html
Kobe a King? It almost happened
Sacramento wanted to draft him at No. 14 in 1996, but Charlotte took him with the previous pick.
By Joe Davidson - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 12:00 am PDT Sunday, April 1, 2007
Twelve years ago, the Kings had eyes for Kobe Bryant.
They targeted the 17-year-old high school phenom from Lower Merion High School in Philadelphia in the 1996 draft with visions of someday piecing their franchise around him.
True story.
As the basketball gods would have it, Bryant wound up just beyond the Kings' reach. He went to Charlotte at No. 13. The Kings settled for Peja Stojakovic at No. 14, though fans pleaded for John Wallace. Before long, Bryant wound up as property of the Lakers through a trade for Vlade Divac.
Bryant has been a Kings curse nearly ever since, guffawing his way to greatness and leaving the Kings to grimace the whole time.
"Now starting at guard for your Sacramento Kings, Kobe Bryant ... " As bizarre as it sounds coming off the tongue, those words might have altered Kings history.
But Bryant's agent never wanted his client to be a King, balking at invitations to come to Sacramento -- among other teams -- for workout sessions, according to Kings executive and TV analyst Jerry Reynolds. Still, whether Bryant wanted to be in Sacramento or not, the Kings were ready to gamble on the pick.
"If Kobe was there (at No. 14), we would have taken him," Reynolds confirmed Friday. "Oh yeah, he would have been here. We really thought he'd still be on the board. And now ... "
And now he's regarded as one of the all-time Lakers greats. He's the most accomplished player of that '96 draft with three championship rings, each journey including an elimination of the Kings. And while Bryant has his Lakers pointed toward the playoffs with a chance at his fourth title, the Kings are on the verge of missing the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons.
There's no way to massage the Kings' consolation leftovers now. The club has on its bench the No. 3 pick in the '96 draft in Shareef Abdur-Rahim and the No. 12 selection, one before Bryant, in Vitaly Potapenko. Who would have guessed?
"Didn't know he'd be this good, though," Reynolds said.
Reynolds is a basketball lifer and fan who said he "appreciates Bryant's greatness."
Still, should one offer him a prettied-up Bryant jersey for old time's sake, he'd scream.
"I'd have it right here next to my Robert Horry jersey," he said.
Bryant isn't just on the Kings' conscience today as the teams meet at Staples Center. He has become a global figure. He no longer has emotional punching bag Shaquille O'Neal by his side, and he doesn't have sexual assault charges on his record, factors that soured his image earlier this decade.
What Bryant has is the best game around. His recent scoring bonanza lumped him with Wilt Chamberlain as the only players to score 50 or more points in four successive games. The Lakers salvaged their season, too, winning all four of those contests after a seven-game losing streak. And Bryant's reputation now includes being a better teammate than before when he had periods of shooting too much.
"Those games cemented the fact that he's one of the greatest to ever play the game," Reynolds said.
And with Bryant these days, it goes beyond MVP talk. Who's the best player, period?
"Kobe (is) the best talent in the NBA, no doubt about it," Gail Goodrich, a Hall of Famer who works as an analyst for NBA TV, said in a phone interview. "Right now, it's not even close."
Who's the most popular? In terms of jersey sales in this country, it's Bryant. In China? His jersey is more sought after than native son Yao Ming's. Bryant has a head start as the most popular player on the planet, yet another reason to compare him favorably to Michael Jordan.
"I'd say so," Goodrich said. "He's learned when to shoot and what to do, and it's an example of maturity really sinking in. And the fan appeal is there. Fans love to see great play. You go to the arena, and you want to see Kobe score. If you're an opponent, you want to win, sure, but if he goes for 50, you want to see that, too."
With viewers never knowing how many points he might score in a given game, Bryant also has become must-see TV. The four Lakers games ABC has broadcast this season drew an average rating of 2.7, according to the network. The nine games not involving the Lakers drew an average of 1.9. On ESPN, eight Lakers game were 1.4, the 51 non-Lakers games 1.1.
"It doesn't hurt that Kobe wears that Lakers jersey," said Doug White, ESPN's director of programming. "And you watch because you know you might see history in the making."
And Bryant has been a boost for an otherwise average Lakers team, in a Western Conference that has been top-heavy with Dallas, Phoenix and San Antonio.
"He's been great for the NBA," Warriors coach Don Nelson said. "Look what he's done."
Kings coach Eric Musselman, who hopes to throw different looks at him on defense today, called him a "basketball genius" at Saturday's practice.
Bryant's four-game tear featured efforts of 65, 50, 60 and 50 points. The Warriors ended the streak, though they lost the game while "holding" Bryant to 43. Bryant scored 53 in the Lakers' loss to Houston on Friday.
Goodrich said Bryant's ability to score, particularly in bunches, has been more impressive than what Chamberlain did, mainly because Chamberlain scored close to the basket in a league that only had one man who could stand up to him -- Bill Russell.
"More impressive than Wilt? Oh, no question," said Goodrich, a former teammate of Chamberlain. "It's the variety of shots that he makes. When Kobe goes right, shoulder down, he's going to score. It's how he scores, the jumpers, fadeaways, drives, that's unbelievable to me. He's at a totally different level than anyone right now."
Bryant also has admitted to attacking the basket more often after his reputation was skewered for picking up his second one-game suspension from the NBA for hitting Minnesota's Marko Jaric with an elbow on March 6. Bryant bristled at accusations that he was a dirty player.
"It's insulting ... ridiculous," Bryant told reporters March 15. The Lakers were coming off a humiliating 108-72 loss to Dallas, which was followed by a 113-86 shelling by Denver, Los Angeles' seventh consecutive defeat.
Then Bryant revved up, and the Lakers followed. Lakers coach Phil Jackson used to tell his star that his prolific ways didn't help the team in general. Now? Jackson told reporters after he went for 50 against New Orleans on March 23 that Bryant is merely "phenomenal."
"He went on a tear, got the approval from his teammates and his coaches, and they said they'd get out of his way," Reynolds said.
Reynolds will do color work for today's Kings-Lakers game. He's bracing for anything from Bryant.
"I don't see any reason why the best isn't still ahead for him, which is scary," he said. "I love watching him play. Just don't want him to win. He's one of those guys like "Dr. J," Michael Jordan, Pete Maravich. You can't take your eyes off of him. He occupies your vision, he's so spectacular."
About the writer: The Bee's Joe Davidson can be reached at jdavidson@ sacbee.com.
Kobe a King? It almost happened
Sacramento wanted to draft him at No. 14 in 1996, but Charlotte took him with the previous pick.
By Joe Davidson - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 12:00 am PDT Sunday, April 1, 2007
Twelve years ago, the Kings had eyes for Kobe Bryant.
They targeted the 17-year-old high school phenom from Lower Merion High School in Philadelphia in the 1996 draft with visions of someday piecing their franchise around him.
True story.
As the basketball gods would have it, Bryant wound up just beyond the Kings' reach. He went to Charlotte at No. 13. The Kings settled for Peja Stojakovic at No. 14, though fans pleaded for John Wallace. Before long, Bryant wound up as property of the Lakers through a trade for Vlade Divac.
Bryant has been a Kings curse nearly ever since, guffawing his way to greatness and leaving the Kings to grimace the whole time.
"Now starting at guard for your Sacramento Kings, Kobe Bryant ... " As bizarre as it sounds coming off the tongue, those words might have altered Kings history.
But Bryant's agent never wanted his client to be a King, balking at invitations to come to Sacramento -- among other teams -- for workout sessions, according to Kings executive and TV analyst Jerry Reynolds. Still, whether Bryant wanted to be in Sacramento or not, the Kings were ready to gamble on the pick.
"If Kobe was there (at No. 14), we would have taken him," Reynolds confirmed Friday. "Oh yeah, he would have been here. We really thought he'd still be on the board. And now ... "
And now he's regarded as one of the all-time Lakers greats. He's the most accomplished player of that '96 draft with three championship rings, each journey including an elimination of the Kings. And while Bryant has his Lakers pointed toward the playoffs with a chance at his fourth title, the Kings are on the verge of missing the playoffs for the first time in eight seasons.
There's no way to massage the Kings' consolation leftovers now. The club has on its bench the No. 3 pick in the '96 draft in Shareef Abdur-Rahim and the No. 12 selection, one before Bryant, in Vitaly Potapenko. Who would have guessed?
"Didn't know he'd be this good, though," Reynolds said.
Reynolds is a basketball lifer and fan who said he "appreciates Bryant's greatness."
Still, should one offer him a prettied-up Bryant jersey for old time's sake, he'd scream.
"I'd have it right here next to my Robert Horry jersey," he said.
Bryant isn't just on the Kings' conscience today as the teams meet at Staples Center. He has become a global figure. He no longer has emotional punching bag Shaquille O'Neal by his side, and he doesn't have sexual assault charges on his record, factors that soured his image earlier this decade.
What Bryant has is the best game around. His recent scoring bonanza lumped him with Wilt Chamberlain as the only players to score 50 or more points in four successive games. The Lakers salvaged their season, too, winning all four of those contests after a seven-game losing streak. And Bryant's reputation now includes being a better teammate than before when he had periods of shooting too much.
"Those games cemented the fact that he's one of the greatest to ever play the game," Reynolds said.
And with Bryant these days, it goes beyond MVP talk. Who's the best player, period?
"Kobe (is) the best talent in the NBA, no doubt about it," Gail Goodrich, a Hall of Famer who works as an analyst for NBA TV, said in a phone interview. "Right now, it's not even close."
Who's the most popular? In terms of jersey sales in this country, it's Bryant. In China? His jersey is more sought after than native son Yao Ming's. Bryant has a head start as the most popular player on the planet, yet another reason to compare him favorably to Michael Jordan.
"I'd say so," Goodrich said. "He's learned when to shoot and what to do, and it's an example of maturity really sinking in. And the fan appeal is there. Fans love to see great play. You go to the arena, and you want to see Kobe score. If you're an opponent, you want to win, sure, but if he goes for 50, you want to see that, too."
With viewers never knowing how many points he might score in a given game, Bryant also has become must-see TV. The four Lakers games ABC has broadcast this season drew an average rating of 2.7, according to the network. The nine games not involving the Lakers drew an average of 1.9. On ESPN, eight Lakers game were 1.4, the 51 non-Lakers games 1.1.
"It doesn't hurt that Kobe wears that Lakers jersey," said Doug White, ESPN's director of programming. "And you watch because you know you might see history in the making."
And Bryant has been a boost for an otherwise average Lakers team, in a Western Conference that has been top-heavy with Dallas, Phoenix and San Antonio.
"He's been great for the NBA," Warriors coach Don Nelson said. "Look what he's done."
Kings coach Eric Musselman, who hopes to throw different looks at him on defense today, called him a "basketball genius" at Saturday's practice.
Bryant's four-game tear featured efforts of 65, 50, 60 and 50 points. The Warriors ended the streak, though they lost the game while "holding" Bryant to 43. Bryant scored 53 in the Lakers' loss to Houston on Friday.
Goodrich said Bryant's ability to score, particularly in bunches, has been more impressive than what Chamberlain did, mainly because Chamberlain scored close to the basket in a league that only had one man who could stand up to him -- Bill Russell.
"More impressive than Wilt? Oh, no question," said Goodrich, a former teammate of Chamberlain. "It's the variety of shots that he makes. When Kobe goes right, shoulder down, he's going to score. It's how he scores, the jumpers, fadeaways, drives, that's unbelievable to me. He's at a totally different level than anyone right now."
Bryant also has admitted to attacking the basket more often after his reputation was skewered for picking up his second one-game suspension from the NBA for hitting Minnesota's Marko Jaric with an elbow on March 6. Bryant bristled at accusations that he was a dirty player.
"It's insulting ... ridiculous," Bryant told reporters March 15. The Lakers were coming off a humiliating 108-72 loss to Dallas, which was followed by a 113-86 shelling by Denver, Los Angeles' seventh consecutive defeat.
Then Bryant revved up, and the Lakers followed. Lakers coach Phil Jackson used to tell his star that his prolific ways didn't help the team in general. Now? Jackson told reporters after he went for 50 against New Orleans on March 23 that Bryant is merely "phenomenal."
"He went on a tear, got the approval from his teammates and his coaches, and they said they'd get out of his way," Reynolds said.
Reynolds will do color work for today's Kings-Lakers game. He's bracing for anything from Bryant.
"I don't see any reason why the best isn't still ahead for him, which is scary," he said. "I love watching him play. Just don't want him to win. He's one of those guys like "Dr. J," Michael Jordan, Pete Maravich. You can't take your eyes off of him. He occupies your vision, he's so spectacular."
About the writer: The Bee's Joe Davidson can be reached at jdavidson@ sacbee.com.
