Lakers Rumors: Kobe Wants Lamar Odom, Derek Fisher Back in LA

The Los Angeles Lakers have been accustomed to listening to their star Kobe Bryant make demands in the past when it comes to potential player moves the front office makes.

But with the season winding down and the Lakers needing to focus on getting wins on the court, all the focus seems to be on off the court issues as of late.

Whether it's been head coach Mike Brown's benching's of Bryant and Andrew Bynum or Bryan't latest efforts to bring back both point guard Derek Fisher and forward Lamar Odom, these are distractions that the Lakers could probably go without as the playoffs near.

According to a report from NBA.com's Scott Howard-Cooper, Bryant is making a very serious push to get both former Lakers back in Los Angeles for next season.

Howard-Cooper writes that a source close to Bryant says that he plans to aggressively make a hard push to get both guys back in Lakers uniforms for next season.

First of all, it's probably a bad idea as the Lakers need to turn the page and start thinking more about the future.

Then you have to consider if either Fisher or Odom would even be open to the idea.

Both guys feelings were hurt when they were dealt and their egos were bruised, especially in the case of Odom, who was hurt by being included in the nixed Chris Paul trade.

Fisher is a free agent after the season, but Odom is not. However, his contract is only partially guaranteed and given his awful performance this season with Dallas, they could be more than happy to show him the door.

But how much would either guy really help this team next season and beyond. The Lakers have financial concerns to begin with and that money would probably be better served spent elsewhere.

Finally, you would have to look at if Lakers management would even want to consider bringing either guy back. There's no guarantee that even with a full-court press on behalf of Bryant that these moves would even be considered.

For now though, Bryant should focus on winning a championship instead of putting on his general manager hat.

He will have plenty of time in the future to make moves when he's retired. There are plenty of fantasy basketball league's out there for Kobe to play general manager all day long. Who knows? Maybe there's a front-office job somewhere down the road with Bryant's name written all over it.

For now, though, Bryant is best served at trying to make his jump shot and not trying to make free-agent signings.