With the 2014-15 Los Angeles Lakers roster near completion and Byron Scott the head coach, all the focus shifts back to Kobe Bryant. After two-season ending injuries, there are question marks if he will return the same player.
Mike Brown was on “The Herd” with Colin Cowherd recently and was asked about Kobe Bryant and his impact in the upcoming season:
”He never ceases to amaze me. I definitely think he has stuff left in his tank. He’s not going to be the Kobe of ten years ago because the explosiveness is not there, but he’s very intelligent, one thing he was always really good at is angles and footwork and the ability to create space.”
”I think he is still capable of playing at a pretty high level.”
Brown was the head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers for a little more than one season. Brown not only coached Kobe, but has coached another elite player in Lebron James. His esteem for Bryant is therefore not be taken for granted. However, Brown’s appraisal of Bryant may or may not be an accurate one as he did not coach Bryant after the advent of both of his injuries.
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Brown’s commendation and belief in Kobe comes primarily from his experience coaching him when he was uninjured. Brown still believes that Kobe has what it takes to perform at a high level. He attributes this to Kobe’s mental ability to breakdown the game of basketball as well as his footwork.
No one knows how Kobe will do next season. However, he still deserves the benefit of the doubt. Kobe should be regarded by the amazing accomplishments he has had throughout his illustrious career. This is exactly what Mike Brown is doing by believing in Kobe’s ability to return and perform at a high level. Until Kobe comes back and shows an inability to play basketball at the standard that he has maintained his entire career, he deserves to be believed in.
[divide]Kobe Bryant Answers Fan’s Questions, Talks Keys To The Game