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Occupation: Basketball Player

Education: Lower Merion High School

Place of Birth: August 23, 1978 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Nicknames: Black Mamba, Mr. 81, Kobe Wan Kenobi

Place of Death: Calabasas, California

Best known for: Winning 5 NBA championships with the LA Lakers

On January 26, 2020, Bryant was onboard a Sikorsky S-76 helicopter that crashed in the Los Angeles suburb of Calabasas. Nine people, including Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna "Gigi," college baseball coach John Altobelli and wife Keri and daughter Alyssa, died. The helicopter was on its way from Orange County to Thousands Oaks, California where Bryant was scheduled to coach a tournament game at Mamba Sports Academy.

Kobe Bryant poses with his daughters (L-R) Gianna, Bianka and Natalia and wife Vanessa (left of Kobe) during halftime after both his #8 and #24 Los Angeles Lakers jerseys are retired at Staples Center on December 18, 2017, in Los Angeles, California.

Kobe Bryant is famous for being one of the best basketball players in the history of the NBA. He played guard for the Los Angeles Lakers for 20 years. He was known for his tough defense, vertical leap, and ability to score winning baskets at the end of the game. He is widely considered the best basketball player of the 2000s and perhaps one of the best of all time. Kobe Bryant won five NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers while establishing himself as one of the game's all-time greats. He died tragically in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020.

Where was Kobe born?

Kobe was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 23, 1978. He has two older sisters, Sharia and Shaya. His dad, Jellybean Joe Bryant, was a pro basketball player, too. Kobe attended Lower Merion High School in a suburb of Philadelphia. He was a standout basketball player and earned several awards including the Naismith High School Player of the Year.

Did Kobe Bryant go to college?

NBA 2019-20: Kobe Bryant attends the Mavericks vs Lakers game with his daughter Gigi

Kobe decided not to attend college and went straight into professional basketball. He said that if he had gone to college, he would have chosen Duke. He was the 13th player taken in the 1996 draft. The Charlotte Hornets drafted Kobe, but immediately traded him to the Los Angeles Lakers for center Vlade Divac. Kobe was only 17 years old when he was drafted. He had turned 18 by the time his first NBA season started.

Who Was Kobe Bryant?

Kobe Bryant spent his early years in Italy and joined the NBA straight out of high school. A dominant scorer, Bryant won five NBA championships and the 2008 MVP Award with the Los Angeles Lakers. Although later seasons were marred by injuries, he surpassed Michael Jordan for third place on the NBA all-time scoring list in December 2014 and retired in 2016 after scoring 60 points in his final game. In 2018, Bryant earned an Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film for Dear Basketball. On January 26, 2020, he was in a helicopter crash that killed Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gigi and seven others.

Has Kobe won any Championships?

Yes. Kobe won 5 NBA championships with the LA Lakers. The first 3 championships were early on in his career (2000-2002). All-Star center Shaquille O'Neal was his teammate at the time. After Shaq was traded, it took some time for the Lakers to rebuild, but they won two more championships, one in 2009 and another in 2010.

His high school team won the state championship his senior year.

He has won two Olympic Gold medals for basketball in 2008 and 2012.

He was the NBA slam dunk champion in 1997.

Kobe Bryant Local DC

Author: US Government

Retirement

After a wildly successful 20 year NBA career, Kobe retired at the end of the 2016 NBA season. He scored 60 points in his final game on April 13, 2016. It was the most points scored by a player in a single game during the 2016 NBA season.

Philanthropy

Among his philanthropic endeavors, the basketball great has partnered with the non-profit After-School All-Stars as part of the Kobe & Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation. He also runs an annual summer camp called the Kobe Basketball Academy.

Does Kobe hold any records?

Kobe scored 81 points in an NBA game, which is the second most points scored in a single game.

He holds the record for the most career points scored by a Los Angeles Laker.

He is the youngest player to score 26,000 career points. He actually held a lot of the "youngest" records in the NBA, but LeBron James is catching him in many categories.

Kobe was the NBA scoring champion in 2006 and 2007.

He was selected to the All-NBA Team fifteen times and the All-Defensive Team twelve times.

At the time of the writing of this article he was third on the all-time NBA scoring list.

Fun Facts about Kobe Bryant

Kobe was the first guard to be drafted by the NBA out of high school.

Kobe played for the Los Angeles Lakers his entire professional career.

He was the youngest player to start an NBA game.

Kobe's mom's brother, John Cox, also played in the NBA.

He was named after the Japanese steak "kobe".

His middle name is Bean.

He spent a lot of his childhood in Italy where his father played professional basketball. He learned how to speak Italian and played a lot of soccer.

Wife and Kids

Bryant married 19-year-old Vanessa Laine in April 2001. The couple is parents to four daughters: Natalia Diamante (b. 2003), Gianna Maria-Onore (b. 2006, d. 2020), Bianka (b. 2016) and Capri (b. 2019).

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