NBA insider Adrian Wojnarowski recently shed light on one of the most significant trade near-misses in basketball history, highlighting Kobe Bryant’s potential move to the Detroit Pistons.
Wojnarowski recounted the pivotal moment on Pardon My Take, stating, “I’d say Kobe [to] the Pistons. That was close… There was a deal with the Pistons where, I don’t remember, it was like Tayshaun [Prince], Rip Hamilton, a bunch of picks.”
Despite an agreed-upon deal between the Lakers and the Pistons, Kobe ultimately opted to remain in Los Angeles after a persuasive conversation with Lakers owner Jerry Buss.
“They had agreed to it, essentially the two teams, but Kobe had to want to do it. I think he went to Jerry Buss’s house. Kobe was in that period where, like, ‘I want out of here’ and I think he kind of pulled him back in,” Wojnarowski continued.
“That trade was agreed to, like, the two teams with the terms, but it was contingent on the Lakers didn’t want to do it for obvious reasons. And then Kobe just said, ‘I don’t want to do this.’
“Think of how different the world would have been if Kobe lands on the Pistons or the Bulls, or Dallas. That summer they talked with a bunch of teams, they were ready to do it.”
