Yet another controversy
surrounding Kobe Bryant this week, this time a video is
involved.
The NBA star is currently vacationing with his family in
Europe, but his absence from the United States did not prevent him
from taking part in the latest controversy.
First came the rumors that Kobe Bryant officially confirmed his request to be
traded.
This report proved to be wrong, after all. A message on
his website, in which he expressed his feelings that he and the
Lakers have different vision, was labeled as posted on June
17th. The message, however, was posted originally on May 30th.
This mistake was picked up by the Associate Press and made
national headlines yesterday.
The Kobe Bryant video, on the other side, could
prove quite damaging to the NBA player. An amateur video of Kobe
Bryant may be released by the end of the week. The men who shot
the video claim that Kobe Bryant was criticizing the team’s
management and the Lakers center Andrew Bynum. A small part of
the Kobe Bryant video was released, and you can watch it below.
The video makers have announced that they will release the
full video, if enough money has been collected through donations.
There is a possibility that the video will be exclusively sold
to the highest bidder. The men remain anonymous, fearing
retributions from the Lakers, and identify themselves simply as
"The Kobe Video Guys".
According to one of the Kobe Video Guys, the
footage was shot in a shopping center parking lot in Newport
Coast, California, where Kobe Bryant lives. The Kobe Video Guys
intend to charge $1.99 through their Web site, believing that
they would make more money that way.
The Lakers are aware of the video but are
declining to comment.
The NBA star is currently vacationing with his family in
Europe, but his absence from the United States did not prevent him
from taking part in the latest controversy. 
Published on 06/19/2007
