Kobe Bryant: Is He Holding the Los Angeles Lakers Back?

When this season began, most fans of the Los Angeles Lakers already had Mike Brown pegged as the scapegoat for any and all struggles the Lakers might have.

I was in this camp, as I doubted he was the answer to the coaching vacancy left by the legendary Phil Jackson. Through the regular season thus far, Brown has been spectacular. After Jackson's Zen hands-off approach to coaching, Brown's urgency and constant coaching is a refreshing change. There is hardly a possession where Brown isn't heard barking at the Lakers about rotations. Brown's leadership has made the front office look great.

The early season struggles can traced to one man:

Kobe Bryant.

Longtime fans have seen this song and dance before. While the "refuse to change my game" attitude was a great thing for a younger Kobe Bryant to say, the current Kobe should be a little more understanding. Kobe is a rare player who wants success without sacrifice.

Where others like Ray Allen have accepted that numbers must decrease for the good of the team, Bryant refuses to do so. Bryant will complain about the front office not surrounding him with enough talent but then refuses to defer to Bynum and Gasol. Would this change even if the Lakers were able to grab Howard from Orlando?

Kobe's problem with Shaq was that Kobe felt he wasn't being given room to grow as a player if he had to dump the ball down low all the time. How hypocritical is it of him, then, to deny Bynum this same chance for growth? Bryant will benefit from Bynum's growth more than anyone else, so why is he trying to sabotage it?

This is eerily similar to how Iverson left the league a few years ago. Iverson, too, refused to cooperate with the younger players in Detroit and Memphis. He burned so many bridges that, even as a still competent scorer, no one was willing to have him on the roster. The difference between Bryant and Iverson is that Bryant is still a great player in the league and is signed for a long time.

Bryant should trust his teammates and accept that he will not always be the focus of a game plan.

If he doesn't, and continues to divide the team and fanbase for the remainder of his career, it will only hurt his own legacy.