Lakers Rumors: Kobe Bryant Stuck with Awful Mess as NBA Landscape Settles

We've seen this before, the Lakers without panache or power. We better get used to seeing a whole lot more of it too. 

The dust of a manic training camp is beginning to settle. Lamar Odom doesn't look ridiculous in a Dallas Mavericks jersey anymore and Chris Paul seemed to fit well in the Clippers system. 

On Monday, the Lakers and Clippers battled in an exhibition game that meant little. Mike Brown fiddled with some lineups in the third quarter and the Clippers subsequently opened a world of hurt. 

The Lakers looked older, slower and worse than they had last year at times. But this is the lineup that we will have to make due with as the promise of rumors slowly extinguish with the season fast approaching. 

In fact, the marquee name that would make the Lakers vastly improved is rumored to be going elsewhere. Earlier Monday, Los Angeles radio reporter John Ireland reported the Nets were close to getting a deal that would see Dwight Howard in New Jersey. 

That is the kind of rumor that Lakers fans have to get used to, the kind that mention that the Lakers will not be getting a top-shelf talent. 

So with no talent coming in, you would think that the best player would want out. Even that doesn't seem to be the case, as Kobe Bryant has recommitted to the purple and gold. 

Here is a snippet of the question and answer with Yahoo! Sports' Marc Spears: 

"

Q: Do you see yourself retiring with the Lakers? 

Bryant: “I don’t know where that comes from. I don’t have any feeling about [leaving] whatsoever.”

Q: So you definitely want to stay a Laker?

Bryant: “Of course. No question. Why not? I’ve been here for 16 years. I’m going to up and leave now?”

Q: Do you want to be one of those rare stars that played in only one place during a long NBA career?

Bryant: “Oh yeah. That would be special. It’s rare to see that nowadays. It’s almost nearly impossible.”

"

If there is any amount of good news to be had in what has been a disaster of a preseason, it's that Kobe Bryant is staying put. 

There are no demands of talent coming to Los Angeles as you would expect, and the pouting has been kept to a minimum. 

If there is anything that would worry a Lakers fan, it's that the Lakers look like they are actually complacent for once in their long history. 

A team that is always trying to get better is staying out according to recent rumors. Now that should really scare you about the prospects of what will be a wild season. 

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