Kobe Bryant is the longtime superstar of the Los Angeles Lakers and there’s no doubt that his thoughts and feelings are very important to them. That however doesn’t mean he will have major input on their next head coach.
via ESPN Los Angeles:
Yes, says Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak, the lines of communication with Kobe Bryant are open. [But] that doesn’t mean the star guard will get a say in whom the team hires as its next coach. “From time to time we ask his advice,” Kupchak told ESPN’s Andy Katz at the NBA draft combine Thursday in Chicago. “He really won’t weigh in on something like this. I’m not even sure that we’ll talk to him prior to interviews. But from time to time, he is in our facility, I’ll go downstairs and I’ll talk to him about a bunch of different things.” During an appearance last week on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” Bryant publicly pined for a seat at the table when it comes time to choose the replacement for Mike D’Antoni, who resigned last month. “On the last two they didn’t,” Bryant said.
Bryant didn’t have a say when the Lakers hired Mike Brown and then Mike D’Antoni, infamously passing on their former legendary coach Phil Jackson.
