Kobe Bryant Unwilling to Take a Big Paycut in 2014

The Los Angeles Lakers will be big spenders in the loaded NBA free agent market in the summer of 2014. Just don’t count on Kobe Bryant — who will make a League-high $30 million next season — taking a massive pay cut in order to help the team lure other stars. Bryant says he’ll try to squeeze as many dollars out of the Lakers as he can. Per Lakers Nation: “Would Kobe Bryant be willing to take a huge pay cut, possibly a one-year minimum salary worth $1.45 million, the ultimate financial sacrifice, to give the Lakers the best chance to rebuild? Not so fast. Kobe bleeds purple and gold, but he’s also a very smart businessman, who had this to say when describing his business hat come 2014. ‘I’m not taking any at all – that’s the negotiation that you have to have.’ Kobe Bryant said. ‘For me to sit here and say, ‘Oh yeah, I’m just going to take a huge pay cut. Nah, I’m going to try to get as much as I possibly can.’ If you were hoping Kobe would think about taking a minimum salary in 2014, think again. Both Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett are examples of veterans who sacrificed more than half their salaries (not minimums) for their teams, but Kobe is a different breed – a financially savvy individual. Bryant also said the business side is always ‘strange’ and ‘uncomfortable’ for athletes, who find themselves in situations where they will get ‘backlashed, inevitably.'”