It seems impossible for a fan to view Los Angeles Lakers superstar and future hall of famer Kobe Bryant with a flexible personality. He has always been known to make things go his way or the highway-- and it works pretty well for the 36-year-old basketball star given a track record of five NBA championships.
That is because Bryant is so determined to do what it takes to win at least one more championship and this justifies his aggressive nature and famous stubborn moments especially during the younger years in his career. He simply is all about winning. If winning at least one more championship means Kobe playing small forward he is, no doubt, would go for it.
Last Monday, the longtime Lakers Trainer Gary Vitti announced that this season would be Bryant's last. Speaking about his time with the team, Vitti has shared a recent one-on-one talk he had with Kobe Bryant. He told Mike Bresnahan of the LA Times:
"'He was asking about our young kids, and I said, 'You cannot believe how quick and athletic Jordan Clarkson is. He looks fantastic,'' Vitti said. 'I said I personally thought D'Angelo Russell is going to be a star. He makes hard things look easy when he has the ball in his hands.''
"'Then Kobe said to me, 'Well, then who's going to play [small forward]?' I looked at him and I said, 'You.' And with absolute, 100% confidence, he said, 'I can do that.''"
It is a role that Bryan after all is not a stranger to. He has played small forward in the past but for very brief occasions. In a report by BasketballReference.com, which estimates player stats in terms of position played during a regular season, Bryant was position two 89% of Lakers' offense, with nine percent of his minutes at small forward.
