Where Will L.A. Laker Guard Kobe Bryant End Up: Chicago Bulls, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, Memphis Grizzlies, Or New York Knicks?

Ten days ago, superstar Kobe Bryant appeared at L.A.’s training camp, smiled for the cameras, and re-pledged his loyalty to the purple-and-gold.

On the surface, everything seemed fine. But what’s on the surface and what’s actually going on are often very different in Laker-land.

For whatever reason, Jerry Buss, the team’s owner and seventy year old playboy, recently gave an interview to the L.A. Times. And the Godfather turned on his number-one capo, publicly stating that the club would trade Bryant if the right deal came along.

The shock-waves are still being felt around the NBA. And the 24-7 Kobe trade rumors are once again dominating chat rooms, water-coolers, and playground courts throughout the world.

Everyone has a theory about where the world’s best player will end up. Here are a few places where Bryant could potentially land:

  The Front Runners:

1) Chicago Bulls

• Why They Could Get Bryant: The Bulls are loaded with young talent, play in the Eastern Conference, and Bryant would literally be following in Jordan’s footsteps.

• Why They Won’t Get Bryant: The Bulls might prefer sticking with their young talent, particularly the trio of Ben Gordon, Luol Deng, and Kirk Hinrich. And the Lakers would need to get a bigger name back to appease the courtside celebs at Staples Center.

2) Utah Jazz

• Why They Could Get Bryant: The Jazz are prepared to offer the Lakers everybody on their roster except Carlos Boozer and Deron Williams. Bryant and Boozer also have a business relationship because they share agent Rob Pelinka.

• Why They Won’t Get Bryant: The Laker would want either Boozer or Williams as part of any package for Bryant. Maybe both.

• Bryant refused to play in Charlotte, so why would he ball in a small market like Salt Lake City? And Utah also plays in the Western Conference, which complicates things for the Lakers.

3) Dallas Mavericks

• Why They Could Get Bryant: Everyone except MVP forward Dirk Nowitzki would be available. So the Lakers could back get some combination of Josh Howard, Jason Terry, and Devin Harris. And Mark Cuban, Dallas’ owner, has the ability to pull off impossible deals.

• Why They Won’t Get Bryant: Again, the Mavs plays in the Western Conference and Buss would hate to see Bryant and Cuban hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy in late June.

An Outside Shot

4) Memphis Grizzlies

• The Grizz could offer Paul Gasol, Mike Conley Jr., and Mike Miller. But Memphis’ ownership situation is too unstable to pull off this kind of mega-trade.
  

5) New York Knicks

• Bryant moving from Hollywood to The Big Apple would be ideal for the NBA. But Bryant should avoid New York while Isiah Thomas and James Dolan are still in charge. 
  

What team do you see Bryant ending up on? Get at us in the comment box below with your thoughts.

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