Stu Lantz opens the celebration by presenting three people on the stage. Kobe Bryant, Phil Jackson, and the Public Relations Representative from KIA Motors.
Phil Jackson was the first to speak and his comments were touching. He said it was one of the best experiences in his life and he was honored to coach Kobe.
The weird looking guy from KIA Motors presented Kobe with the trophy, talked about KIA Motors, presented Kobe a car that will be donated to a charity, and he once again sits down.
Kobe finally has the chance to make comments. His main statement that he continues to repeat, over and over, is how thankful he is for his teammates. He gives a lot of credit to the coaching staff and Mitch Kupchak for bringing in the talent. He should be considered for GM of the year. Also, he thanked his manager Rob Pelinka, his family, and Jerry Buss, the owner of the Los Angeles Lakers.
Luke Walton asks a random question like he’s one of the random media members. He asks Kobe if, since his teammates are responsible for Kobe winning the award, can his teammates be expecting gifts of any kind? I think that this form of exchange between Kobe and Luke is just an example of what this team is all about.
Tex Winters asks Kobe a question: How do you feel about the Triangle offense? Kobe gives him many thanks and tells him about how important he has been in creating so many options for the team to run. It makes it impossible for teams to lock in and it makes the game more beautiful to play.
Kobe discusses how this season can only end in a perfect way if the team lifts a NBA Title trophy at the end of the year. Without that, there isn’t much, so the Hollywood ending would be with a title.
Some woman asks a question in Spanish, he replies in Spanish, very impressive.
Would you like to be a Laker for the rest of your life? Yes, I would like to. (Claps from the audience)
This team is better than in the past because the guys just clicked at the right time. Everyone knows their job and the trades have made Kobe more productive with the group of players around him.
The talk during the summer didn’t matter, the team was focused on one thing, the championship. The guys came together and were prepared to improve and accomplish big things.
Fans chanting MVP at the foul line, what will it mean now that you really are? It will feel more special, it gives me goosebumps just thinking about it.
The task at hand is the Utah Jazz, comment on Boston-LA final? I will give you standard Phil Jackson answer, we are going day-to-day.
What will you do this off season to improve next season? Stop Pau Gasol from winning a gold medal at the Olympics.
What does it mean to be in the group of Kareem, Magic, and Shaq? Lakers franchise players not just greatest to be in purple and gold, but they are some of the greatest to ever play the game in general. The honor is being comprehension.
Very hard worker, where does it come from? It’s fun for me, I don’t look at it as work. I enjoy the preparation. I enjoy the weight lifting, I enjoy the running. It’s pretty easy to do when you enjoy it.
I don’t know that I’ve ever seen Kobe Bryant smile quite this much in a short span of time. The news conference was amazing. The back and forth with his teammates and the media was a fun experience for everyone involved.
Congratulations to Kobe Bryant.
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