With his recent metaphorical tirade, Kobe Bryant may be following his big brother Shaquille O'Neal into the rap world. Calling his teammates "soft like Charmin", the aging superstar can certainly talk game. The looming question is whether or not he can still play it.

Bryant is now the third highest scorer in NBA history, passing Michael Jordan with a free throw against the Minnesota Timberwolves last week. A top-five scorer in the league, it is impressive that Bryant continues to play at a high level in his 19th season. But while passing Jordan on the scoring list was certainly an achievement for Bryant, a burning desire to win a sixth ring remains. Unfortunately, the expression on the 36 year-old's face after scoring his 32,293rd point indicated that even he knows that goal may be out of reach.

Bryant now sits behind two greats in Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Karl Malone on the all-time scoring list, but has been tasked with taming a young, inexperienced group of rascal teammates. New head coach Byron Scott has not had a winning season since 2009 and has not been too strong in the teambuilding department. And it should be no surprise that Kobe Bryant is more of a statistics specialist than a chemistry major.

The incident at a recent Lakers practice seemed to be a sign of Bryant beginning to boil over. After battling leg injuries the past two seasons, Bryant has returned to All-Star form. But he, of all people, knows that the Lakers' current roster cannot even be considered championship-caliber. The Lakers have several high-maintenance players in Bryant and Nick Young, who has thrived in Hollywood under the alias "Swaggy P." After returning from injury at the beginning of the season, Young has been a constant agitator that has frustrated Bryant. Jeremy Lin was the first to butt heads with Young and now Bryant has joined in. Young was certainly included in the group which Bryant labeled "soft" at a recent practice and the two bantered about one-on-one abilities

It is also important to note that the "Charmin" practice was the first for Bryant in the month of December. It is not only a result of Bryant's aging body, but also an indication that Bryant truly cannot play alongside his current teammates and is certainly not up for the task of handing off the baton to one of them. The Lakers have been in rebuilding mode for several years after the Dwight Howard and Steve Nash experiment failed. Now, it seems as though they will continue that trend while counting down the days to Bryant's retirement. Jeremy Lin and Julius Randle are both question marks and Young, while showing tremendous skill level at times, is starting to travel down a path that ends where Bryant is now-minus the superstardom and historical stats. So, now, more than ever, the Lakers are in search of their next superstar.

With an expiring contract the Lakers will be thankful to unload, Kobe Bryant is nearing the end of his playing days in Los Angeles. It is unfortunate to see that he clearly wants no part in the rebuilding process and refuses to extend any leadership to his struggling rascal teammates. What will be interesting to see is whether or not Bryant wants to continue his basketball career after his contract expires and, if so, whether or not the Lakers will indeed part ways with him. For now, Bryant will distance himself from Jordan on the scoring list, while doing the same to the rest of his team as they prepare for another trip to the NBA lottery.