Former basketball player Kobe Bryant won five NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers to establish himself as one of the greatest players ever. He tragically died in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020.
Who is Kobe Bryant?
Kobe Bryant spent his youth in Italy and immediately joined the NBA in high school. Goalkeeper Bryant has won five NBA titles and a 2008 MVP Award with the Los Angeles Lakers. Despite next season’s injury, he overtook Michael Jordan for third place on the NBA All-Time list in December 2014 and retired in 2016 after scoring 60 points in his last game. In 2018, Bryant won the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film for Basketball. Bryant, on January 26, 2020, He and his 13-year-old daughter, Gigi, and seven other people died in a helicopter crash.
Birth
Kobe Bean Bryant was born on August 23, 1978, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Called Japan, Bryant is the son of former NBA player Joe “Jellybean” Bryant.
In 1984, after retiring from his NBA career, Elder Kobe took his family to Italy, where he played in the Italian League. Growing up in Italy with two older sisters, Shaya and Sharia, Kobe was a professional basketball player. When his family returned to Philadelphia in 1991, Bryant joined the Lower Merion High School basketball team, becoming a four-year state championship. In the NBA he also started working with the 76ers.
Despite having good grades and a high SAT score, Bryant decided to join the NBA straight from high school. The Charlotte Hornets chose the thirteenth overall pick in the 1996 NBA league and were bought by the Los Angeles Lakers.
NBA performance and stats
In his second season with the Lakers, Bryant was selected as a starter for the 1998 All-Star Game, becoming the youngest player in NBA history at the age of 19. The run then returned to Shaquille O’Neal’s midfielder, along with a third direct win. NBA Championship and was selected as the NBA first team from 2002 to 2004. He has signed several years of support contracts with Adidas, Sprite, and other sponsors.
Although the Lakers struggled after O’Neal’s departure in 2004, Bryant did well. He won 81 points against the Toronto Raptors in January 2006, the highest-scoring series in NBA history, and led a team that scored goals that year and the following year.
In 2008, Bryant was named the most valuable player and led his team to the NBA Finals, where the Boston Celtics won. In the 2009 NBA Finals, the Lakers beat Orlando Magic to win the tournament. Shortly thereafter, Bryant came as part of a memorial service honoring his friend and musician Michael Jackson. The following year, the Lakers won their second title by beating the Celtics.
Kobe competed on the United States Olympic team in 2008 and 2012 and won gold medals alongside Kevin Durant, LeBron James, and Carmelo Anthony, among many top-level athletes.
After sustaining an Achilles tendon fracture in April 2013, Kobe worked hard to return to the pitch before breaking his knee in just six games in the 2013-14 season. The All-Star veteran overtook Michael Jordan for the third time in the NBA rankings in December 2014, but his time was cut short due to injury for the third consecutive year after suffering a tolerated rotating cuff concussion. in January 2015.
Retirment
While Bryant returned in time for the start of the 2015-16 NBA season, he is himself strong against his fellow Lakers. In November 2015, he announced his retirement at the end of the season. “This time it was all I had left to give,” he wrote on the Tribune Player website. “My heart can handle the sound, my mind can handle the beat, but my body knows it’s time to say goodbye.”
The announcement drew strong reactions, most notably from NBA commissioner Adam Silver. Silver said, “With 17 NBA All-Star selections, an NBA MVP, five NBA tours with the Lakers, two Olympic gold medals, and endless career standards, Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest athletes in our game history.”, Silver said. declaration. “Whether it’s competing in the final or taking a high jump after midnight in the gym, Kobe has an unconditional love for the game.”
On April 13, 2016, Bryant led a weary crowd at Staples Center to fans around the world in the final game of his career, scoring 60 points and giving the Lakers victory at the Utah Jazz. Bryant’s sixth game was a 60-yard touchdown run.
After the game, Bryant spoke to the crowd. “I can’t believe how 20 years has gone so fast,” he said. “Stupid… standing in the middle of the pitch with you, my teammates behind me, and respecting our journey – we got promoted, the most important part is we are all together.”
All of the Laker star-studded shows contributed to Kobe, including O’Neal, Phil Jackson, Pau Gasol, Derek Fisher, Lamar Odom, and Magic Johnson. Johnson said, “We came here to celebrate 20 years of music.” Best for 20 years. Kobe Bryant doesn’t hide his game, he never hides it from us as fans. He played three injuries, injured himself. We also have five flags to show it.”
Charity
Kobe’s charitable endeavor, basketball has joined the non-profit organization All-Stars After-School as part of the Kobe & Vanessa Bryant Family Foundation. He also runs a summer camp called Kobe Basketball Academy.
Wife and children
Bryant married 19-year-old Vanessa Laine in April 2001. The couple has four daughters: Natalia Diamante (born 2003), Gianna Maria (born 2006, to 2020), Bianka (born 2016) and Capri (born in 2006).
