Kobe and Bynum

Yesterday Kobe Bryant got his right knee injured on an exhibition game against the Bobcats which the Lakers won by 102-98, and as of now the extent of the injury is unknown.

Kobe went after a rebound when he bumped into Josh Powell, at that moment his knee was hyperextended. He immediately made some signs to the bench indicating that he was injured and left the court with 3:08 minutes remaining on the second quarter. He finished with 4 points in 14 minutes.

Bryant didn’t make too many comments when asked on the injury, "It's sore, it's sore. I'll have more for you guys.” He said.

Today he will be re-evaluated in order to determine the near future of the current NBA MVP.

So when Kobe Bryant isn’t able to help his team, there is another name it comes to mind: Andrew Bynum, who is the near the date of his contract extension and is the most important man after Kobe at the Lakers.

Los Angeles and Bynum haven’t reached any terms yet, and rumor has it that both sides numbers are not even close, with Bynum demanding an all-star salary while the Lakers are still thinking how is Andrew Bynum really worth for the team.

Kobe Bryant is entering the 30’s and Bynum is surely the future of the team, so why are the Lakers not treating him like the franchise player he is?

With Bryant on the team, Bynum has a more defensive roll but when Kobe retires, the team will depend on the 20 year-old center.

If business are good between Andrew Bynum and the Lakers, we can expect to see a team that will surely be more dangerous than last season with a trio made of Pau Gasol, Bynum and Kobe Bryant.