The summer of 2004 was a tough one for the Los Angeles Lakers. After their heartbreaking loss to the Detroit Pistons in the 2004 NBA Finals, the team now had to confront difficult questions about its future. Were they going to keep Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal together? Would they let the two stars settle their differences for another championship shot?
As the Lakers‘ front office ruminated about their future, Kobe, too, was thinking about his next move. Bryant reportedly spoke with representatives of the Chicago Bulls, Denver Nuggets, and New York Knicks. The Black Mamba eventually narrowed down his choices to the two LA teams.
Verbal commitment
Lakers legend Elgin Baylor, then the Los Angeles Clippers general manager, told the media he was prepared to do anything he could to lure Bryant in. He set up a meeting with Clippers coach Mike Dunleavy Sr., owner Donald Sterling and team president Andy Roeser at a luxury hotel in Newport Beach near Bryant’s home.
The front office made its pitch and Kobe listened intently. Baylor and company felt good, as they felt Bryant had had enough of Shaq and wanted out of the Lakers. After the meeting, as Bryant was about to head out, Sterling, desperate to quench his curiosity, asked, “Is this really going to happen?”
“Kobe turned to him and — this is an exact quote that I’ve had repeated to me by multiple people — he said, ‘Don’t worry, I’m a Clipper.’ So he walked out the door and [the Clippers] are all high-fiving each other thinking, ‘By God, we’ve done it,'” as related by legendary Clippers broadcaster Ralph Lawyer, via the Los Angeles Times.
“If anybody denies any of that,” Lawler added. “They are of faulty memory or they just don’t want to acknowledge it because that is what happened in that meeting in that hotel room.”
Kobe reportedly gave Baylor a verbal commitment to join the Clippers. There were even discussions about how the team would welcome their new superstar.
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Dogging a bullet
The Clippers offered a six-year deal worth over $100 million. The contract signified new beginnings for Kobe, who was desperate to get away from Shaq. The Clippers provided this opportunity for the star shooting guard.
Just as he was about to ink the deal, he called up Lakers owner Jerry Buss, perhaps to have one final conversation to thank him for believing in a lanky 17-year-old kid from Philly. However, the discussion became a monumental moment in Bryant’s career.
“At the end of the day,” Bryant said in 2016, “Jerry Buss trumped it all.”
After their conversation, news broke that the Lakers had traded Shaquille O’Neal to the Miami Heat in exchange for Caron Butler, Lamar Odom, Brian Grant, and a future first-round draft pick. The following day, Kobe inked a seven-year, $136-million deal to return to the Lakers.
Apart from the front office’s initiatives, Kobe also got a nudge from Jerry West, then the Memphis Grizzlies general manager. The Logo wasn’t just aware of Bryant’s immense value to the Lakers’ fan base; it also knew a few things about Sterling.
“I said, ‘Kobe, you can’t go play with the Clippers,'” West said. “You can’t play for that owner, period.”
Bryant dodged a major bullet, as years later, the NBA banished Sterling from the league after his racist statements were revealed. Meanwhile, Kobe and the Lakers continued their partnership, which resulted in two more championships.