As if ESPN hadn’t done enough to motivate Kobe Bryant heading into the 2013-14 NBA season saying the Los Angeles Lakers will finish 12th in the Western Conference, the massive sports network poured more fuel on the fire on Wednesday.
Apparently, ESPN believes Kobe is now the 25th best player in the NBA. Obviously, there’s a lot of questions marks heading into the upcoming regular season due to Kobe coming off surgery on his Achilles, but ranking him that low is surprising to say the least.
At this point in time, no one questions the fact that Kobe is nearing the end of his career. Even Kobe is starting to embrace the end of his career, but putting 24 players ahead of the perennial All-Star and future Hall-of-Famer has left the Lakers fan base enraged while scratching their heads in disbelief.
Essentially, Lakers fans should thank ESPN for lowballing the Lakers and arguably one of the greatest basketball players of all-time. Kobe thrives on being the underdog and will use this ranking as more motivation to return to form as one of the league’s elite.
Perhaps the most surprising aspect of ESPN’s low ranking is the fact Kobe hasn’t responded via Twitter or Instagram. The five-time champion is likely as busy as can be in China with it possibly being only a matter of time before he vents through social media.
Stay tuned. Kobe might have another gem on the way.
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