Kobe Bryant was in China for Nike’s RISE campaign. In an interview by SINA for NBA.com Kobe was asked what his highest and lowest expectations were for the upcoming season. In true Kobe fashion his answer was not surprising.
Championship. Championship. That’s all there is winning a championship,” Bryant said before being pressed about the lowest acceptable expectation. “The lowest? I don’t even think about because it’s not an option. You focus on what the end goal is, you know that’s where you want to get to and now, every single day, you do what’s necessary to get you there.
The Lakers are coming off of one of the worst seasons in franchise history. Furthermore, the Lakers failed to sign any of the available superstars this Summer. In fact ESPN’s Chad Ford recently predicted that the Laker’s would finish 13th in the Western Conference.
But the Black Mamba retains his confidence despite all of the odds against him, and he has surprised sports analysts before. Most recently, he willed the Lakers to the 7th seed at the end of the 2013 season just before he tore his Achilles tendon.
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Kobe only played in 6 regular season games, during the 2013-2014 season, before fracturing his knee. The Lakers ended up finishing 14th in the West only above Utah. Thus, a season with Kobe and without him can mean the difference between making the playoffs and not.
Of course, for Bryant that isn’t enough. It remains to be seen what kind of player Kobe will show himself to be next season. All eyes are on Kobe.
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