While there isn’t an official deal yet, the prospect of Kobe Bryant playing in Italy during the lockout is certainly gaining a fair amount of momentum. The rumors currently swirling have Bryant attempting to reach an agreement with Virtus Bologna, where he would sign an estimated $4 million deal.
However, some of the Italian players have already expressed their interest in committing some ‘hard fouls’ against Bryant once he begins playing. These statements have made some of the Lakers management, as well as the fans, quite nervous. Although a report in the Los Angeles Times says that if Bryant does indeed decide to play overseas, he will be quite careful when he does it.
“Bryant, 33, had a procedure on an arthritic joint in his right knee in Germany in the summer. If he plays in Italy, he will probably do so “fairly carefully,” according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
Translation: There probably won’t be many blind crashes to the hoop or wild dunk attempts.”
Hopefully this helps put the minds of the Lakers front office and fans at ease, but the reality of the situation is that until Bryant is back on the court with the Lakers there will be uneasiness in Los Angeles.