Lakers GM Kupchak backs up coach's goal: 'To win a championship,' says Kobe looks good

Apparently insane goals aren't just the domain of new Los Angeles Lakers head coach Byron Scott, who suggested the first thing he'll tell his new team is that the goal is to win a championship.

On Friday, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak echoed that sentiment, despite all evidence pointing to it being a relative impossibility.

Helping with that goal, according to Kupchak, should be the health of superstar Kobe Bryant, who he expects to be the pre-injury version of Kobe Bryant. Bryant has missed most of the past two seasons with leg injuries and could have his minutes managed this season as a result, but Kupchak said Bryant has looked good and has even trimmed down.

Maybe just as important with a team that now skews younger than the Lakers are used to, Bryant's mere presence is something the organization puts a lot of stock into.

That's all good and well, and it's more than fine for Kupchak and Scott to preach lofty goals as a means of breeding a championship culture for future years (and to get fans excited). The reality, however, is that the Lakers are nowhere near a title contender on paper, and a more attainable goal may be a playoff berth with a "then we'll see what happens" attitude.