Mitch Kupchak: Season About Celebrating Kobe Bryant

For much of the 2015-16 season, the Los Angeles Lakers have been trying to balance the development of their younger players while also celebrating Kobe Bryant, who is retiring after his 20th campaign in the NBA. Although the season isn’t over, the Lakers sit at 8-28, and general manager Mitch Kupchak told ESPN that this season is about Bryant.

Any plans to more frequently feature their younger core are on hold until he is gone. “Under normal circumstances [in a season like this], at some point, you would probably concentrate on just developing all your young players,” Kupchak told ESPN on Tuesday. “But we can’t do that right now.

Source: Baxter Holmes of ESPN