i get the pros and cons of the deal here and mostly agree with you if you look at my initial response to this proposal. with those guys in year two of their deals, they are due $10M in actual salary each year essentially. that is not terrible for a starting 1/5, and the cap hits are averaged out to less than the payout.

like i said, if they are going to keep this group together, they make this deal. personally, i'd start thinking about blowing it up sooner than later. they have nothing going forward. they could save money, acquire assets and take a clear direction. but it doesn't make short term financial sense, plus they dont want to get into a PR storm by dogging kobe out in any way.