In a new interview, Los Angeles Lakers owner Jeanie Buss indicated that back in 2007, the idea of the late Kobe Bryant leaving to play for the Los Angeles Clippers was “very possible.”
Buss appeared on the “All the Smoke” podcast and was asked by the show’s co-host Stephen Jackson how close Bryant came to joining the Clippers.
“I never had that conversation with Kobe, but there was a game where he wore Clipper colors,” Buss said. “Not even the jersey, he wore the colors. Very subtle. I could see, he loves challenges and that would have been a huge thing, right? So I do think that was something that was very possible.”
At the time, the Clippers were an inconsistent team that never challenged for an NBA title and were often among the worst franchises in the league.
In the end, Bryant chose to stay with the Lakers for a total of 20 years before he retired in 2016. Just two years after he had made his decision to stay with the team, the Lakers won the first of two consecutive NBA titles.
Even before Bryant’s tragic death last year, he had cemented his legacy as an all-time great and Lakers legend. While he no doubt would have remained an NBA legend, a change of heart in 2007 wouldn’t likely have endeared him to the Lakers fan base.
