NBA: Vlade Divac says trading him for Kobe Bryant was a 'no-brainer'

Today, Vlade Divac operates around the organization end of basketball, taking into consideration transactions, evaluating assets -- anything he can do to create his team much better. So much in the job is about assessing worth. What is fair value? What exactly is worth bringing (come to nba mt coins ) in or providing up? These are day-to-day queries Divac faces as common manager of the Sacramento Kings.

But almost 20 years ago, Divac sat on the other side of your table, as a 7-foot-1 center and dependable double-double threat who was merely an asset moved in exchange for a further.

Some players are traded quite a few times throughout their careers, but this deal marked the only a single Divac was involved in for the duration of his 16-season NBA playing profession. Having said that, it became one of one of the most notable trades in league history because of the player Divac was traded for.

Kobe Bryant.

That deal sent the then-17-year-old Bryant from the Charlotte Hornets, who had drafted him out of higher college with the 13th general pick in 1996, for the Los Angeles Lakers. The rest, because the saying goes, is history, which has judged the trade inside a (come to nba mt coins ) rather harsh light.

It has typically been labeled one of the most lopsided deal the league has ever noticed, considering the player Bryant became.

Looking back, Divac views the swap within a various way, one that is a little a lot more favorable to him.

"It gives you a recognition of the assets, how much you're worth to the team," Divac told ESPN leading up to what's expected to be Bryant's final game in Sacramento on Thursday.

"If they trade you to get a Kobe, that means that you are not undesirable," he stated having a laugh. "Let's place it that way."

Back then, Divac was a prominent piece for the Lakers, who had drafted him using the 26th general pick in 1989.

He was named to the 1990 all-rookie initially group, and by 1993-94, he averaged 14.two points and 10.8 rebounds per game, becoming the initial Laker because Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to lead the team in both categories. A season later, Divac averaged 16 points, generating him the 17th player in NBA history to improve his scoring in his 1st six seasons.

But top towards the 1996 NBA draft, the Lakers worked out Bryant, a (vist NBA 2k16 coins) 6-foot-6 guard from Lower Merion High School in suburban Philadelphia, in the Forum in Inglewood. And Jerry West, then the Lakers' common manager, named it the very best workout he'd ever seen.

West worked speedy to orchestrate a draft-day deal to send Divac, 28 in the time, to the Hornets for Bryant.

"They didn't tell me what was going on," Divac mentioned. "They really just told me 1 day that they currently made a deal. Personally, I did not like it.

"My philosophy, playing basketball, [was] I played basketball for fun. Going somewhere to play just because somebody told me to go there, I didn't like it. So I was contemplating [retiring]."

At that point, Divac said he didn't know a lot about Bryant. He only knew of Bryant's father, Joe, who had also played in Europe.

"But when Jerry West makes a deal, you realize some thing is happening," Divac mentioned. "I felt so poor, but realizing Jerry West was involved, he knows what he's doing. I was positive that this kid is going to possess a great career."

It's hard to say what could have happened had Divac retired. Would undertaking so have blocked Bryant from coming for the Lakers, hence dramatically altering history? Possibly.

Regardless, Divac eventually accepted the deal, and for excellent reason. The Lakers had been determined to trade him 1 way or a different to clear cap area to ensure that they could present more funds to free-agent center Shaquille O'Neal. Not extended following the deal commenced, the Lakers signed O'Neal, marking among by far the most resurgent offseasons in NBA history. Bryant went on to win five Lakers championships, 3 of them alongside O'Neal.

In Charlotte, Divac was nonetheless efficient, averaging 11.7 points and 8.7 rebounds from 1996 to '98. In each of those two seasons, the Hornets won 50-plus games.

"Going to Charlotte and getting there two years, I missed L.A., nevertheless it was fantastic for me," Divac stated.

In 1999, Divac signed as a cost-free agent with all the Kings, assisting to in the end create a potent rivalry together with the Lakers that resulted in a number of the NBA's most memorable playoff battles, particularly inside the 2002 Western Conference finals, which the Lakers won in seven games.

"It was epic," Divac mentioned. "We have been probably the two ideal teams inside the league for all those couple years playing against one another and pushing each other to the limits. I feel it was a great chance for both teams. Of course, we came up short, but it was enjoyable playing against the Lakers and of course Kobe. He was a huge portion of their accomplishment. They pushed us. I feel we pushed them for the limits. It was amazing to be component of it."

Does Divac possess a favorite memory? Yes, even though, he said, "It's not a 'favorite' one." It was Game four of those 2002 conference finals. The Kings led the series 2-1 at that point and held a 20-point lead at the finish on the 1st quarter. However the Lakers rallied.

In the fourth, Divac made a totally free throw to provide the Kings a 99-97 lead with 11.eight seconds left. Bryant drove for the basket, but Divac contested a short shot, and Bryant missed. O'Neal gathered the rebound and attempted for any putback, but he missed, as well.

"I attempted to knock the ball down and kind of hope that time was going to expire," Divac stated.

Instead, he tipped the ball back out, and it went straight into the hands of Lakers forward Robert Horry, who launched and buried a 3-pointer in the top of your key as time expired.

"Basically, I threw the pass to Robert Horry, and he hit the 3," Divac said. "That was certainly a difficult, challenging time for us."

Divac rejoined the Lakers for his final NBA season in 2004-05, teaming with the player with whom his profession had extended been intertwined.

"I knew he was very passionate about basketball, but seeing him each day in practices -- in the event you had a doubt or in case you were wondering why he was so prosperous, becoming about him, you knew specifically why he's successful," Divac said. "He's 100 % in each and every single practice, just the way he played, the things that he was performing for all his teammates to become the same way. That is anything that tends to make everybody greater on the floor.

"A lot of guys could discover a whole lot from him, the way he conducts himself with all the basketball issues."

Divac stated the two never brought up that fateful trade, either.

"Now, from this distance, I am pretty content that he went to L.A. and had the profession that he had and became one of the greatest players," Divac said. "I possess a large amount of respect for him. I feel he brought to the league one thing special. We're all thankful for the profession he's had."

And now that he's within the business enterprise of thinking about transactions and evaluating assets, Divac has much more perspective about being involved in the trade that practically 20 years ago created Bryant a Laker.

"I didn't like it in the starting, but later on, if I was in Jerry West's footwear, I would do the exact same issue," Divac stated with a laugh.

"I would trade myself for Kobe, no-brainer."