Lakers News: Kobe Bryant Will No Longer Play For USA Basketball

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Kobe Bryant is currently in the Philippines as part of his promotional tour for Lenovo. Bryant met with fans in Pasay City where he discussed numerous topics, including if he’ll play in the FIBA World Cup in Madrid, Spain.

According to BusinessMirror’s Jonathan Perez, Bryant said he loves competing and representing the United States, but believes it’s time for the younger players to participate next year:

  “I love competing, but I will let the young guys play and represent the country.”

As a two-time Olympic gold medalist, Bryant’s only concern is winning his sixth championship, which would tie Michael Jordan:

“I had my fun playing, just leave the NBA championships to me.”

Bryant also gave advice for the Gilas Pilipinas, who will be playing in the World Cup. He believes communication is the most important key to play as a unit, something he hopes the Lakers will improve on this upcoming season:

“Communication can accomplish a lot of things. But you need to do it as a team. It can hide the team’s weaknesses since if you know each other very well, you know how to  support each other.”

During his Asia tour, all Kobe Bryant has talked about besides his innovative Achilles surgery is winning his sixth championship. This past season, Bryant talked about how this upcoming season would be his last, but both factors have re-motivated and re-energized the Lakers superstar to continue playing.

This upcoming season will be a challenge for Kobe and the Lakers. Many are counting them out, but if the team is able come together, the Lakers will surprise a lot of doubters this season.

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