Kobe Bryant criticized LeBron James' leadership...could this hurt the Lakers' chances to land the Cavs superstar?
The Lakers legend joined a Bleacher Report panel this week, and provided some interesting comments as his former team prepares a full-court free agency press on James.
Below are a few of the more notable quotes from the discussion:
On advice from Michael Jordan...
Michael gave me some really good advice after the '08 Finals: 'You got all the tools. You gotta figure out how to get these guys to that next level to win that championship.' Going into the 2010 series, I said, 'Listen, Boston, they got Ray Allen, they got Paul Pierce, they got [Kevin] Garnett, they got Sheed [Wallace], the talent is there. They're stacked.' That was the first superteam. [Michael] kind of heard me lament about it, and he just goes, 'Yeah, well, it is what it is; you gotta figure it out. There's no other alternative.' And that's the challenge LeBron has. You have pieces that you have to try to figure out how to work with. Excuses don't work right now.
On LeBron's leadership...
It has everything to do with how you build the team, from an emotional level. How do you motivate them?…Leadership is not making guys better by just throwing them the ball. That's not what it is. It's about the influence that you have on them to reach their full potential. And some of it's not pretty. Some of it's challenging, some of it's confrontational. Some of it's pat on the back. But it's finding that balance, so now when you show up to play a Golden State or a Boston, your guys feel like you have the confidence to take on more.
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