Kobe Bryant being recruited to join Inside the NBA

During his final season, Kobe Bryant often spoke of his desire to tell stories. The future Hall of Famer got a heck of a start to storytelling when he wrote the magical 60-point ending to his career last Wednesday, but could he be interested in shaping the narratives of other basketball players?

According to TMZ Sports, that scenario is on the table. The website reports that Inside the NBA has "reached out" to Kobe to gauge his interest in joining the multiple Emmy award-winning panel of Ernie Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, Kenny Smith, and that Bryant is "evaluating" his career options in retirement before making a decision on joining TNT.

As Kobe's farewell tour postgame quote-athon made clear, the man knows his way around spinning a basketball anecdote. He has previously spoken about focusing his post-retirement efforts on his personal company, Kobe Inc, so he may not be ready to join TNT just yet. However, if the notorious workaholic decides he has some extra time to analyze basketball games, he would be a welcome addition to TNT's already strong panel.

Other than reuniting with Shaq to put the best one-two punch ever back on T.V., Bryant's ability to break down the game could improve the level of analysis on the show if the producers decided to focus a segment around him ala "Shaqtin a Fool" for O'Neal. Something like "Kobe's clips," where Bryant breaks down sets could be a smart addition to the show.  On a show best known for the analysts razzing each other constantly, Bryant's legendary trash talking ability could be fun element to add to "Inside" as well.

Or if Bryant wants to stay out of the studio entirely, his understanding of the game and quotability could make him an excellent color analyst.

It sounds like Kobe still has a ways to go before signing on with TNT, but it's fun to think about.

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