Kobe Bryant has cemented his legacy as one of the greatest Lakers in the history of the franchise. If things had gone a bit differently in the months leading up to the 1996 NBA Draft, however, we might be celebrating Bryant as one of the greatest Celtics in franchise history. According to Baxter Holmes of ESPN, the Celtics, including Red Auerbach, were enamored with Bryant after he blew them away in his pre-draft workout.
Auerbach and Carr talked about how well Bryant shot the ball. Carr raved about Bryant’s institutional knowledge of the game. Auerbach waxed about Bryant’s size and athleticism.
“I think this kid is going to be a hell of a player,” Auerbach told Carr. “But it can go either way. He seems to be solid, but he’s a high school kid. You’ve got to make a choice based on what you need today. But I think he’s a hell of a player.”
Auerbach left the decision of whether to draft Bryant in the hands of M.L. Carr. Had the Celtics kept their ninth pick, perhaps they would have been more amenable to taking the straight-out-of-high-school Bryant. But they traded up to snag the sixth pick, determined to take one of the so-called “super six:” Antoine Walker, Ray Allen, Shareef Abdur-Rahim, Marcus Camby, Allen Iverson and Stephon Marbury.
“We worked our butts off to get in a position where we could be in the top six,” Carr says. “My eye was on Antoine because I knew that watching him — [and] Kentucky had just come off a championship year in college — [that with] his skill set, he could be an incredible impact player.”
Carr ultimately got his wish when the Celtics drafted Walker instead of Bryant. Obviously, hindsight is 20-20, but it’s hard to fault Carr and the Celtics for passing on Bryant. While his talent was undeniable and he’d earned rave reviews in the workouts, he was still less of a sure thing than any of the other prospects. Neither fans nor owners are known for their patience, especially when it comes to a high draft pick, and Bryant was going to take a few years to develop. Walker, meanwhile, had both untapped potential and the ability to make an impact immediately – which he did.
Twelve other teams passed on Bryant that night, mostly for good reason. While they’d all probably like to have that pick back, they had no way of knowing that Bryant would turn into an all-time great.
(Via ESPN)
