Constantly being mentioned as a trade candidate and with rumors swirling around him, there was a strong belief that Bynum would eventually wind up in an Orlando uniform in a move that would bring Howard to Los Angeles.
Different scenarios of proposed deals made headlines, but general manager Mitch Kupchak never gave them any credence.
Maybe Kupchak and Jim Buss were prophetic. Maybe they knew that greatness awaited Bynum this year.
Or maybe they just got lucky.
Back in May of 2011, when Mike Brown was introduced as Phil Jackson's replacement, Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports wrote a sharp column on how the Lakers should have consulted Kobe Bryant on Brown's hire.
Buried in the middle of the piece was an interesting nugget on how Jerry Buss' decision to turn the team over to his son, Jim, would impact the Lakers' decision-making moving forward.
From Wojnarowski:
Jim Buss has two guys in the franchise: Brown and Andrew Bynum. In fact, Buss has made something clear within the Lakers, sources say: Bynum is untouchable in trade talks.
After all, Bynum was Jim Buss’ discovery, his pet project and believes Bynum will ultimately resonate as the son’s personal Lakers legacy.
To me, this is fascinating.
Yes, it's true that we heard all sorts of rumors involving Bynum around the trade deadline.
But, many of those appeared fabricated, and it's rather amazing what "league sources" can say about a certain proposed deal after the deadline has passed.
Regardless, it's a moot discussion at this point.
The Lakers have been thrilled with what Bynum has brought to the team this season.
Although many have made it a point to tie the young center's emergence to Brown giving him more looks in the post, the overriding factor in Byn...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
