Kobe Bryant Ranked 40th NBA Player By ESPN, Promptly Calls ESPN 'A Bunch Of Idiots'

Kobe Bryant got the 40th spot on ESPN’s newly released 2014 NBA player rankings -- and the Los Angeles Lakers superstar is not happy about it.

Reporter Bill Oram, who covers the Lakers for the Orange County Register, said Friday that the 36-year-old player called ESPN "a bunch of idiots" in reaction to the ranking.

As Bleacher Report notes, Bryant only played six games last season due to a knee injury.

"Obviously this has been a frustrating and disappointing season," Bryant said in a statement in March.

This isn’t the first time that Bryant has lashed out following a poor ESPN ranking. Last year, the news outlet ranked him 25th, and he reportedly called the decision “silly” and “laughable.”

Despite Bryant's low ranking this year, Lakers coach Byron Scott says he believes the NBA veteran will "have the last laugh."

"I just look at it and I kind of smirk," Scott said of Bryant's ranking, per ESPN. "I see him every day practicing. I see how hard he works and I see how where he's coming from to this particular point after the injury, and I know he's going to get stronger."