Kobe Bryant is enduring the worst slump of his NBA career. Only, it isn't a slump.
The fading Lakers star could be tarnishing his legacy, with the help of coach Byron Scott.
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Bryant is shooting 31.1 percent from the floor this season and 19.5 percent from 3-point range. He is averaging 19.3 shots per game and scoring just 17.8 points per game.
The Black Mamba is averaging 30.5 minutes per game, his time increasing from earlier in the season when Scott insisted he would stick to a plan that would keep Bryant from exceeding a ceiling of minutes per game, which was figured to be fewer than 30.
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And so while the five-time NBA champion's shooting percentage continues to sink lower, Scott keeps sending out a champion past his prime.
"I would never, never, never do that," Scott said after practice at the Lakers' facility, according to ESPN. "That's not an option whatsoever. No, that's not an option."
TNT analyst Charles Barkley insists the Lakers veteran needs to retire, according to The Los Angeles Times.
"Somebody asked me how I knew it was time to retire," Barkley, a Hall of Fame player, told The Times. "I said because I was pump-faking. So now I see Kobe and he's pump-faking because he's scared they are going to block his shot. That's what the pump-faking is. People are knocking your shot into the stands."
The 20th-year NBA star simply is too worn down athletically to rediscover his basketball form, Barkley says.
"Kobe can't get open shots. He can't go around people to get layups. It's hard to make contested shots."
The Black Mamba is coming off a dreadful shooting night against the Warriors in which he shot 1-for-14 from the floor during a 111-77 Lakers loss to the defending champions. If that wasn't bad enough, it was also a game in which Bryant said beforehand that he didn't think a Los Angeles upset of Golden State was out of the question.
Barkley isn't the only one who has called out Kobe for his play. An anonymous NBA player also threw shade on Bryant's play, according to The Times.
"Yeah, I've seen him play and it's disgusting," he said. "He's one of the best of all time. But he really hasn't played that much in the last two or three years. He's got nothing left. It's sad to watch because he used to be so great, and I mean great."
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