Is Incessant Groping Worth $50 Million to Kobe?

As Kobe ↵Bryant considers Europe -- today, Adrian Wojnarowski of ↵Yahoo! Sports presses a thread which says #24 will explore the ↵international market before agreeing to a stateside ↵contract as a free agent in 2009 -- he might want to ↵remember today, for better or worse.
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↵Awful Announcing has video from this morning’s U.S. ↵women’s basketball game against the Czech Republic as ↵Kobe makes his way through the adoring crowds, who have no ↵issue becoming physically familiar with the star.
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↵Obviously, any Russian oligarch who can pay out a $50 ↵million/year contract can hire a few decent bodyguards for ↵his American jewels. But if NBA players fret because they ↵can’t eat without being interrupted in the States, the ↵ravenous appetite of international fans to get close to ↵these cultural kings should be a factor in defection ↵decisions.↵