Kobe Bryant on critical ESPN article: 'I just roll with it'
Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe Bryant said he is used to being criticized after an article was published saying that Bryant was “destroying the Lakers from within.”
In an ESPN.com piece written by Henry Abbott, simply titled “Kobe,” it was suggested he is primarily responsible for the team’s recent decline. Last season, Bryant only played six games because of a knee injury and the team missed the playoffs for only the sixth time in the franchise’s history.
“It's not the first one and it won't be the last one," Bryant said. "One thing I've come to understand over the years is that you'll have a bad story that comes out on a Monday and it seems like it's the end of the world and it seems like everybody's taking shots at you. But time goes by and then you look back on it and it was just a Monday.”
Bryant said he is focused on the big picture.
"I just kind of roll with it,” Bryant said.
This isn’t the first time Bryant, a 16-time All-Star, has had issues with ESPN. Last week, a panel of ESPN's media members voted Bryant as the 40th best player in the NBA.
Bryant responded, “I’ve known for a long time that they’re a bunch of idiots.”
The Lakers open the regular season at home Oct. 28 against the Houston Rockets.
- Scooby Axson
