Vanessa Bryant: Why Lakers’ Ex-WAG Will Be Kobe Bryant’s Downfall

Kobe Bryant's days of a dominating NBA superstar were nearing an end as his Los Angeles Lakers were emphatically swept from the playoffs last season, and now that his wife Vanessa has filed for divorce, his career will spiral downward and out of control.

Bryant has already looked down at Lakers training camp this season, obviously mad over how the Chris Paul trade to the Purple and Gold was killed and that the star point guard ultimately ended up with the Clippers.



The team also traded last year's Sixth Man of the Year, Lamar Odom, to the team that destroyed them in the playoffs, the Dallas Mavericks, for practically nothing. That was a move Bryant publicly spoke against, he was puzzled by it.

Bryant did not need any more distractions headed into this season. There are questions surrounding his health, primarily of his knees. He's had finger issues in the past as well.

At 33 years old and having played 18 years of NBA basketball, if you include playoff games, there is certainly a ton of wear and tear on his body.

The personal hardships Bryant will face off the court from this divorce will certainly take a toll on him. Family matters typically affect a player's on-court play during difficult times.

The Lakers are not going to be as good as they were last season, and with an aging roster that lacks a solid bench, the team will make the playoffs, but will not get very far.

Bryant's knees are not very good and he cannot take the Lakers past the Western Conference semifinals by himself. His 22.8 points per game last season in the playoffs was at least six points lower than each of his four previous postseason scoring averages.

Teammate Pau Gasol's terrible performance in the playoffs last season was blamed on personal problems by many because it was reported that he broke up with his girlfriend near that time, and whether or not it was a real ...

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