Bryant extends Lakers stint
NBA’S TOP EARNER EXPECTED TO END CAREER WITH LOS ANGELES SIDE
Kobe Bryant signed a two- year contract extension with the Los Angeles Lakers, a deal that likely means the 35- year- old guard will complete his career as a Lakers player, the club announced late on Monday.
No terms were announced but ESPN reported that the deal was worth $ 48.5 million ( Dh178.12 million) and will keep Bryant as the NBA’s highest- paid player. Bryant will make $ 30.4 million this season under his prior contract.
Bryant, who is recovering from a ruptured left Achilles tendon, has returned to practice with the Lakers but is not yet ready to play and the team has not offered a timetable on when he might be back in games.
Bryant tweeted a photo of his signature on a contract line with the hashtag Laker4Life and Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak said he expects the deal, which would give Bryant two decades in the NBA, will enable the star guard to finish his career in purple and gold.
“This is a very happy day for Lakers fans and for the Lakers organisation,” said Lakers gen- eral manager Mitch Kupchak.
“To play 20 years in the NBA, and to do so with the same team, is unprecedented, and quite an accomplishment.”
The Lakers have won five NBA titles since Bryant joined the team after being taken 13th overall by Charlotte in the 1996 NBA Draft and traded to Los Angeles. He is the Lakers’ all- time leading scorer and ranks fourth on the NBA’s career scoring list. He was named the NBA’s regular season Most Valuable Player in 2008 and the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player in 2009 and 2010.
The 15- time NBA All- Star also helped the United States team capture Olympic gold medals at Beijing in 2008 and at London last year.