Keeping The Lakers Afloat

With Kobe Bryant reaching for life after basketball, the Los Angeles Lakers need to make the most out of the time he has left. 

“Greatness lies ahead for this young man,” Jerry West said of Kobe Bryant, shortly before trading Vlade Divac for Bryant in 1996.

West proved to be “Mr. Clutch” again for the Lakers that night nearly two decades ago.

We’re all aware of the buzzer-beating heaves, All-Star MVPs and records Bryant has gift wrapped for basketball fans. The five NBA championships are also a staple in his resume.

Bryant is the face of the Los Angeles Lakers. In spite of the legends who came before him, Black Mamba has cemented himself as the one of the best players of all time — let alone in Laker history. If Magic Johnson calls Kobe the best Laker ever, it’s probably time to recognize.

He has been the Michael Jeffery Jordan of his era. He’s slithered, slide-stepped and shimmied his way to the hoop in true-Mamba fashion. We’ve gazed at his fade-away jumpers and acrobatic dunks — just as we did for MJ.

Though all careers must come to an end, and Bryant’s looming retirement is waiting impatiently in the lobby.

So now where do the Lakers turn? Neither Jerry West nor the late, great Dr. Buss are walking through that door. Geanie Buss’ fiance is taking a bite out of the Big Apple.

Here’s the bad news for the Lakers: they’re awful and aging.

The good news? They have a lottery pick in a very deep 2014 NBA Draft and about $28 million to spend after this season.

Bryant is due to make just shy of $50 million in the next two years, and Steve Nash’s $9.7 million will be soaked up after next season.  Plus the payroll will salute Pau Gasol’s $19 million contract after this season comes to a close.

Some younger guys have gotten quality minutes with Bryant’s injury-plagued season. Nick Young has a player option for just more than $1 million, and Kendall Marshall has a team option. Marshon Brooks, Kent Bazemore and Wesley Johnson might have earned new contracts as role players, assuming they don’t mind loose change to be a part of something bigger. That seems to be the Lakers’ plan.

LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony and others might be available this off-season, but the word on the street is those top two will probably opt into the final year of their contracts and become free agents next year with Kevin Love and Rajon Rondo.

What good is $28 million if you can’t spend it? And with only two years left before Bryant (supposedly) will call it quits, can you afford to not make any drastic overhauls this Summer? My guess is no.

A 270-game streak of selling out home games came to an end in November. That’s seven years’ worth of packing the Staples Center. Though the average attendance for Laker home games has only dropped by about 100 fans in the past year, it’s still unprecedented for the historic franchise.

Maybe Mitch Kupchak and Jim Buss can orchestrate a deal for Love and/or Rondo, but with the current state of the Lakers’ assets — not to mention Buss’ track record — it’s highly unlikely.

Let’s not forget the Lakers have a head coach, who all but pushes superstars out the door. Mike D’Antoni is the reason Dwight Howard is in Houston, and he’s the reason Gasol is ticked off in Tinsel Town. Now even Bryant is looking forward to D’Antoni’s departure.

Maybe the healing process begins there. Suck out the poison before  you bandage the wound.

D’Antoni has gone 65-80 in nearly two years as head coach of the Lakers. Golf claps for the 2004-05 NBA Coach of the Year.

If the Lakers want to put together a contender next year, they’ll have to make major moves soon.

That lottery pick could turn into Jabari Parker, Andrew Wiggins or Dante Exum. But is one rookie enough? Sure, it makes sense for the post-Bryant era, but the Lakers will need more fire power than that if they want to compete with San Antonio and Oklahoma City.

Point guard has been an issue since Derek Fisher moved on — rather the Lakers moved on from him. Exum and Marcus Smart would make sense, but how do you go against Wiggins or Parker? Both of them have franchise-changing potential.

I honestly believe, if the Lakers hit the lottery and get the first pick, they’ll go with Parker. Parker has superstar potential, as does Wiggins, but Parker is more refined as a scorer right now. So if the Lakers were going to make a push for next year, Parker would be the safer bet.

Again, star power is  needed in order to do so.

Kupchak and Buss have an opportunity to make or break the team for the next decade. It’s not too late to clean up the mess that’s been made. The ship can still be righted. (Insert optimistic cliche here).

The one thing that won’t get the job done is talking. To survive in the business, you have to take chances. Most importantly, you have to be assertive.

Bryant’s pouring his time into Kobe. Inc. and some new sports drink named BodyArmor.

While he’s off being a venture capitalist, make moves. If that means shipping out Nash, do it. He’s played in 62 games in two years. He can’t possibly be the answer you’re looking for. Face it: you entered the Nash party seven years too late.

The Lakers need to make moves now if they want to be the franchise that won 16 championships.

Praying Bryant can order new legs off Amazon is also an option. I’m not sure if they’re available for Amazon Prime, so making smarter player transactions is probably the quicker solution.