Myth or Reality?: Kobe Bryant Threatened to Leave the Lakers After Ex-Teammate’s $33.5 Million Deal With the Rockets

Kobe Bryant had some unique relationships both off the court and on it. Amongst the many, one such friendship he had was with his former on-court partner Trevor Ariza. The two all-round players brought the 2009 championship trophy home for the LA Lakers, making quite an impact for Ariza. However, the latter became a free agent after that season. When the Lakers did not sign him back, the Black Mamba did not like it. But was Bryant’s reaction as dramatic as they say?

When discussing his departure from the Lakers’ locker room on the Straight 2 Da Point podcast, Ariza got a piece of news he wasn’t aware of. A co-host mentioned that Kobe was hot because Ariza left for Houston when the Lakers didn’t want to match the 5-year, $33 million contract offered by the Rockets. Instead, they replaced him with Rockets small forward Ron Artest (Now known as Metta Sandiford-Artest) to defend their wings.

But another co-host’s words found Ariza astonished. He said, “One of the myths was they said he was so pissed that they didn’t keep you, he was trying to leave low-key.” Surely, that was a surprising fact since Kobe Bryant is synonymous with the Lakers in the basketball world. The 2009 champion exclaimed, “Damn that’s crazy!” 

He continued talking about his partnership with the Black Mamba, saying, “Nah, we had a cool relationship man. He was one of my brothers man. I looked at him, I asked him for advice, he kind of guided me with advice on how to get better.”

Ariza also mentioned how he and Bryant would work out together through the summers. Kobe was like his guide through everything, changing his perspective towards the game and victories. Is that why Kobe Bryant wanted him on the roster?

Did Kobe Bryant really put the Lakers in jeopardy over Ariza?

Whether he did or did not give out any warning of leaving his home team is not public. But it is no headline that Kobe was not happy with the Lakers’ financial choices. When Bryant was in his prime in the NBA, Ariza took off with the Houston Rockets. According to Kobe, Trevor would have helped the team on both defensive and offensive fronts.

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However, with the addition of a former All-Star like Artest, the roster became even more robust. Turned out that Artest gave off better averages and paired nicely with the 2x NBA champs Pau Gasol and Lamar Odom, filling the void left by Ariza. In fact, the Lakers even won another trophy with the former basketball veteran. In the end, Ariza did get to retire from the NBA with the Lakers as they re-signed him in 2021.

We cannot say if Kobe went as far as wanting to leave LA, especially with bigger players on his side. Still, do you think it was the truth or just a rumor to spice things up for the Lakers?

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