Everything about Kobe Bryant totally explained
Kobe Bean Bryant (born ) is an
American All-Star shooting guard who plays for the
Los Angeles Lakers of the
National Basketball Association. Bryant is the only son of former
Philadelphia 76ers player and former
Los Angeles Sparks head coach
Joe "Jellybean" Bryant. His parents named him after the
famous beef of
Kobe,
Japan, which they saw on a restaurant menu.
Bryant rose to national prominence in
1996 when he became the first guard in league history to be
drafted out of high school. Bryant and then-teammate
Shaquille O'Neal led the Lakers to three consecutive
NBA championships from
2000 to
2002. Since O'Neal's departure following the
2003-04 season, Bryant has become the cornerstone of the Lakers franchise, and was the
NBA's leading scorer during the
2005-06 and
2006-07 seasons. In 2006, Bryant scored a career high 81 points against the
Toronto Raptors, the second highest number of points scored in NBA history. He was awarded the season's MVP in 2008 after leading his team to the
2008 NBA Playoffs as the first seed in the Western Conference.
In 2003, Bryant made headlines when he was accused of sexual assault at a ski resort in
Eagle, Colorado by hotel employee
Katelyn Faber. Bryant admitted an adulterous sexual encounter with the accuser, but denied the sexual assault allegation. In
September 2004, prosecutors dropped the case after Faber informed them that she was unwilling to testify. Faber brought a separate civil suit against Bryant that was ultimately settled out of court.
Biography
Early life
Kobe Bryant was born in
Philadelphia,
Pennsylvania, the youngest child and only son of
Joe and Pam Bryant (they also have two daughters, Shaya and Sharia).
When Bryant was six, his father left the NBA, moved his family to
Italy, and started playing professional basketball there. Bryant became accustomed to the lifestyle there and learned to speak fluent
Italian. At an early age, he learned to play
soccer and at first his favorite team was
AC Milan. He has said that if he'd stayed in Italy, he'd have tried to become a professional soccer player, and that his favorite team is
FC Barcelona. Bryant is a big fan of former FC Barcelona manager
Frank Rijkaard and their star player
Ronaldinho.
In 1991, the Bryants moved back to the
United States. He earned national recognition during a spectacular high school career at
Lower Merion High School in the Philadelphia suburb of
Lower Merion. His
SAT score of 1080 would have ensured his basketball scholarship to various top-tier colleges. Bryant has stated that had he decided to go to college after high school, he'd have attended
Duke University. Ultimately, however, the 17-year-old Bryant made the decision to go directly into the NBA.
1996 NBA Draft
Before he was chosen as the 13th overall
draft pick by the
Charlotte Hornets in 1996, the 17-year-old Bryant refused to play for anyone but the Los Angeles Lakers. According to Kobe's agent Art Tellum at the time, Kobe playing for the Charlotte Hornets was "an impossibility." But Charlotte Hornets chose him still, seeing that there was a chance to deal with the Lakers.
First Three Seasons (1997-1999)
During
his first season, Bryant mostly came off the bench behind guards
Eddie Jones and
Nick Van Exel. Initially, he played limited minutes, but as the season continued, he began to see some more playing time. He earned himself a reputation as a high-flyer and a fan-favorite by winning the 1997
Slam Dunk Contest.
In Bryant's second season (
1997-98), he received more playing time and began to show more of his abilities as a talented young guard. He was the runner-up for the
NBA's Sixth Man of the Year Award, and through fan voting, he also became the youngest
NBA All-Star starter.
While his statistics were impressive for his age, he was still a young guard who lacked the experience to complement
Shaquille O'Neal and significantly help the team contend for a championship. The
1998-99 season marked Bryant's emergence as starting guards
Nick Van Exel and
Eddie Jones were traded at Shaq's request. The results, however, were no better, as the Lakers were swept by the
San Antonio Spurs in the Western Conference semi-finals.
Championship Years (2000-2002)
Bryant's fortunes would soon change when
Phil Jackson became coach for the Los Angeles Lakers in 1999. After years of steady improvement, Bryant had become one of the premier
shooting guards in the league, a fact that was evidenced by his annual presence in the league's All-NBA, All-Star, and All-Defensive teams. The Los Angeles Lakers became premier championship contenders under Bryant and O'Neal, who formed an outstanding center-guard combination. Jackson utilized the
triangle offense he used to win six championships with the
Chicago Bulls, which helped both Bryant and Shaq rise to the elite class of the NBA. Their NBA championships in
2000,
2001, and
2002 proved such a fact.
Post-Championship Years (2002-04)
In the
2002-03 NBA season, Bryant averaged 30 points per game and embarked on a historic run, posting 40 or more points in nine consecutive games while averaging 40.6 in the entire month of February. In addition, he averaged 6.9
rebounds, 5.9
assists, and 2.2
steals per game, all career highs up to that point. For the first time in his career Bryant was voted on to both the All-NBA and All-Defensive 1st teams. After finishing 50-32 in the regular season, the Lakers floundered
in the playoffs and lost in the Western Conference semi-finals to the eventual NBA champion
San Antonio Spurs in six games.
In the following
2003-04 NBA season, the Lakers were able to acquire NBA All Stars
Karl Malone, and
Gary Payton to make another push at the NBA Championship. With a starting lineup of four future
Hall of Fame players in Shaquille O'Neal, Malone, Payton, and Bryant, the Lakers were able to
reach the NBA Finals. In the Finals, they were eliminated by the
Detroit Pistons in 5 games. In that series, Bryant averaged 22.6 points per game, shooting 35.1% from the field, and dishing 4.4 assists per game.
No More Shaq...(2004-2007)
With his reputation badly damaged from all that had happened over the previous year, Bryant was closely scrutinized and criticized during the season. This first season without O'Neal would prove to be a rocky one.
A particularly damaging salvo came from Phil Jackson in . The book detailed the events of the Lakers' tumultuous
2003-04 season and has a number of criticisms of Bryant. In the book Jackson also calls Bryant "uncoachable."
Then, midway through the season,
Rudy Tomjanovich suddenly resigned as Lakers coach, citing the recurrence of health problems and exhaustion. Without "Rudy T," stewardship of the remainder of the Lakers' season fell to career assistant coach
Frank Hamblen. Despite the fact that Bryant was the league's second leading scorer at 27.6 points per game, the Lakers floundered and missed the playoffs for the first time in over a decade. This year signified a drop in Bryant's overall status in the NBA, as he didn't make the NBA All-Defensive Team and was also demoted to the All-NBA Third Team.
The
2005-06 NBA season would mark a crossroads in Bryant's basketball career. Despite past differences with Bryant,
Phil Jackson returned to coach the Lakers. Bryant endorsed the move, and by all appearances, the two men worked together well the second time around, leading the Lakers
back into the playoffs. Bryant also resolved his conflict with former teammate Shaquille O'Neal. The team posted a 45-37 record, an eleven-game improvement over the previous season, and the entire squad seemed to be clicking.
In the first round of the playoffs, the Lakers played well enough (3-1 series lead) to come within six seconds of eliminating the second-seeded
Phoenix Suns. Despite Bryant's remarkable game winning shot in Game 4, the Lakers broke down, and ultimately fell to the Suns in seven games. In the following off-season, Bryant had knee surgery, preventing him from participating in the
2006 FIBA World Championship tournament.
Bryant's individual scoring accomplishments posted resulted in the finest statistical season of his career. On
December 20, Bryant scored 62 points in three quarters against the
Dallas Mavericks. Entering the fourth quarter Bryant had, by himself, outscored the entire Mavericks team 62-61, the only time a player has done this through three quarters since the advent of the 24-second
shot clock. When the Lakers faced the
Miami Heat on
January 16,
2006, Bryant and Shaquille O'Neal made headlines by engaging in handshakes and hugs before the game, signifying the end of
the feud that had festered between the two players since O'Neal's departure from Los Angeles. A month later, at the 2006
NBA All-Star Game, the two laughed and joked together on several occasions. On
January 22, Bryant scored 81 points in a 122-104 victory against the
Toronto Raptors. For the month of January, Bryant averaged 43.4 per game, the eighth highest single month scoring average in NBA history, and highest for any player other than Chamberlain. By the end of the season, Bryant set Lakers single-season franchise records for the most 40-point games (27) and most points scored (2,832). He won the league's scoring title for the first time, posting a scoring average of (
35.4). Bryant finished in fourth-place in the voting for the 2006
NBA Most Valuable Player Award, but received 22 first place votes — second only to winner
Steve Nash.
Later in the season, it was reported that Bryant would change his jersey number from 8 to 24 at the start of the
2006-07 NBA season. Bryant's first high school number was 24 before he switched to 33. After the Lakers' season ended, Bryant said on
TNT that he wanted 24 as a rookie, but it was unavailable, as was 33, retired with
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Bryant wore 143 at the
Adidas ABCD camp, and chose 8 by adding those numbers.
During the
2006-07 season, Bryant was selected to his 9th All-Star Game appearance, and on
February 18, he logged 31 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assists, and 6 steals, earning his second career All-Star Game MVP trophy.
Over the course of the season, Bryant became involved in a number of on court incidents. On
January 28 while attempting to draw contact on a potential game winning jumpshot, he flailed his arm striking
San Antonio Spurs guard
Manu Ginobili in the face with his elbow. Following league review, Bryant was suspended for the subsequent game at
Madison Square Garden against the
New York Knicks, the basis given for the suspension was that Bryant had performed an "unnatural motion" in swinging his arm backwards. Later, on
March 6, he seemed to repeat the motion this time striking
Minnesota Timberwolves guard
Marko Jarić. On
March 7 the NBA handed Bryant his second one-game suspension, leading several commentators in the media to call recent happenings into question. In his first game back on
March 9, he elbowed
Kyle Korver in the face which was retrospectively re-classified as a Type 1
flagrant foul.
On
March 16, Bryant scored a season-high 65 points in a home game against the
Portland Trail Blazers, which helped end the Lakers 7-game losing streak. This was the second best scoring performance of his 11-year career. The following game, Bryant recorded 50 points against the
Minnesota Timberwolves, after which he scored 60 points in a road win against the
Memphis Grizzlies - becoming the second Laker to score three straight 50-plus point games, a feat not seen since
Michael Jordan last did it in 1987. The only other Laker to do so was
Elgin Baylor, who also scored 50+ in three consecutive contests in December
1962. On
March 23, in a game against the New Orleans Hornets, Bryant scored 50 points, making him the second player in NBA history to have 4 straight 50 point games behind
Wilt Chamberlain, who is the all-time leader with seven consecutive 50 point games twice. Bryant, finished the year with ten 50-plus point games becoming the only player other than Chamberlain in 1961-62 and 1962-63 to do it in one season, and won his second straight scoring title.
During the 2006-07 season, Bryant's jersey became the top selling NBA jersey in the United States and China. A number of journalists have attributed the improved sales to Bryant's new jersey number, as well as his continuing All-Star performance on the court. In the
2007 NBA Playoffs, the Lakers were once again eliminated in the first round by the Phoenix Suns.
MVP Year (2007-present)
On
May 27,
2007, ESPN reported that Bryant stated that he wanted to be traded if Jerry West didn't return to the team with full authority. Bryant later confirmed his desire for West's return to the franchise, but denied stating that he'd want to be traded if that doesn't occur. However, three days later, on
Stephen A. Smith's radio program, Bryant expressed anger over a Lakers "insider" who claimed that Kobe was responsible for
Shaquille O'Neal's departure from the team, and publicly stated, "I want to be traded." Three hours after making that statement, Kobe stated in another interview that after having a conversation with head coach
Phil Jackson, he's reconsidered his decision and backed off his trade request. On
December 23,
2007 Kobe became the youngest player (29 years, 122 days) to reach 20,000 points, in a game against the
New York Knicks, in
Madison Square Garden.
Despite an injury, described as "a complete tear of the radial collateral ligament, an avulsion fracture, and a volar plate injury at the MCP joint" of his shooting hand's small finger, that occurred in a game against the New Jersey Nets on
February 5,
2008; Bryant played all 82 games of the regular season instead of opting for surgery. Regarding his injury, he stated, "I would prefer to delay any surgical procedure until after our Lakers season, and this summer’s Olympic Games. But, this is an injury that myself and the Lakers’ medical staff will just have to continue to monitor on a day-to-day basis."
Leading his team to a West best 57-25 record, they swept the Nuggets in the first round and on
May 6,
2008, Bryant was officially announced as the
NBA Most Valuable Player award, his first for his career. He said quote "It's been a long ride. I'm very proud to represent this organization, to represent this city."
Jerry West, who was responsible for bringing Kobe to the Lakers was on hand at the press conference to observe Bryant receive his MVP trophy from NBA commissioner David Stern. He stated, "Kobe deserved it. He's had just another great season. Doesn't surprise me one bit." In addition to winning his MVP award, Bryant was the only unanimous selection to the All-NBA team on
May 8,
2008 for the third straight season and sixth time in his career. He would then headline the NBA All-Defensive First Team with
Kevin Garnett, receiving 52 points overall including 24 first-place nods, earning his eighth selection.
In the Western Conference Semifinals on
May 16,
2008, Bryant and the Lakers defeated the Utah Jazz in 6 games, and moved on to the Western Conference Finals for the first time since 2004.
Player profile
Bryant is a
shooting guard who is capable of playing the
small forward position on some occasions. He is considered one of the most complete players in
NBA history, has been elected to every All-NBA Team from 1999 till last year, and has been and featured in the last ten NBA All-Star games. He is a prolific scorer, averaging 25.0 points per game for his career, along with 4.6 assists, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.5 steals per game. He is known for his ability to create shots for himself, and is an adept outside shooter, sharing the single-game NBA record for three pointers made with twelve. He has exceptional ballhandling skills and utilizes his speed and athletic ability to elude defenders to finish at the basket. Aside from this, he's also a standout defender having made the All-Defensive 1st or 2nd Team 8 of the last 9 seasons.
Conflicts and turmoil
In the summer of 2003, the sheriff's office of
Eagle, Colorado arrested Kobe Bryant in connection with an investigation of a
sexual assault complaint filed by 19-year old hotel employee
Katelyn Faber. Bryant had checked into The Lodge and Spa at Cordillera hotel in Eagle, Colorado in advance of having knee surgery near. Faber accused Bryant of raping her in his hotel room the night before the surgery. Bryant admitted an adulterous sexual encounter with his accuser, but denied her sexual assault allegation.
The accusation tarnished Bryant's reputation, as the public's perception of Bryant plummeted, and his endorsement contracts with
McDonald's,
Nutella, and
Ferrero SpA were terminated. Sales figures from NBA merchandisers indicate that sales of Bryant's replica jersey fell far off from their previous highs.
During the investigation, Kobe told police that "he should have done what Shaq does ... that Shaq would pay his women not to say anything" and that Shaq already had paid up to $1 million "for situations like this." This created controversy because Kobe and Shaq were teammates at the time and many thought that Kobe broke "locker-room code" by revealing confidential information.
However, in September 2004 the assault case was dropped by prosecutors after Faber refused to testify in the trial. Afterwords, Kobe agreed to "apologize" to the victim for the incident, including his public
mea culpa: "Although I truly believe this encounter between us was consensual, I recognize now that she didn't and doesn't view this incident the same way I did." Faber filed a separate civil lawsuit against Bryant, which the two sides ultimately settled with the specific terms of the settlement being undisclosed to the public. Bryant's endorsement deals resumed again with certain companies like
Nike,
Spalding, and
Coca-Cola.
Personal life
In November 1999, 21 year old Bryant met 17 year old
Vanessa Laine while she was working as a background dancer on the
Tha Eastsidaz music video
G'd Up. Bryant was in the building working on his debut musical album, which was never released.
The two began dating and became engaged just six months later in May 2000,
They married on
April 18,
2001 in
Dana Point, California. Neither Bryant's parents, his two sisters, longtime advisor and agent Arn Tellem, nor Bryant's Laker teammates attended. Bryant's parents were opposed to the marriage for a number of reasons. Reportedly Bryant's parents had problems with him marrying so young, especially to a woman who wasn't African-American.
NBA career statistics
|
Regular season |
|
Playoffs |
| Year |
Team |
GP |
MPG |
SPG |
BPG |
RPG |
APG |
FG% |
PPG |
|
GP |
MPG |
SPG |
BPG |
RPG |
APG |
FG% |
PPG |
| 1996-97 |
L.A. Lakers |
71 |
15.5 |
0.69 |
0.32 |
1.9 |
1.3 |
.417 |
7.6 |
|
9 |
14.8 |
0.33 |
0.22 |
1.2 |
1.2 |
.382 |
8.2 |
| 1997-98 |
L.A. Lakers |
79 |
26.0 |
0.94 |
0.51 |
3.1 |
2.5 |
.428 |
15.4 |
|
11 |
20.0 |
0.27 |
0.73 |
1.9 |
1.5 |
.408 |
8.7 |
| 1998-99 |
L.A. Lakers |
50 |
37.9 |
1.44 |
1.00 |
5.3 |
3.8 |
.465 |
19.9 |
|
8 |
39.4 |
1.88 |
1.25 |
6.9 |
4.6 |
.430 |
19.8 |
| 1999-00 |
L.A. Lakers |
66 |
38.2 |
1.61 |
0.94 |
6.3 |
4.9 |
.468 |
22.5 |
|
22 |
39.0 |
1.45 |
1.45 |
4.5 |
4.4 |
.442 |
21.1 |
| 2000-01 |
L.A. Lakers |
68 |
40.9 |
1.68 |
0.63 |
5.9 |
5.0 |
.464 |
28.5 |
|
16 |
43.4 |
1.56 |
0.75 |
7.3 |
6.1 |
.469 |
29.4 |
| 2001-02 |
L.A. Lakers |
80 |
38.3 |
1.48 |
0.44 |
5.5 |
5.5 |
.469 |
25.2 |
|
19 |
43.8 |
1.42 |
0.89 |
5.8 |
4.6 |
.434 |
26.6 |
| 2002-03 |
L.A. Lakers |
82 |
41.5 |
2.21 |
0.82 |
6.9 |
5.9 |
.451 |
30.0 |
|
12 |
44.3 |
1.17 |
0.08 |
5.1 |
5.2 |
.432 |
32.1 |
| 2003-04 |
L.A. Lakers |
65 |
37.6 |
1.72 |
0.43 |
5.5 |
5.1 |
.438 |
24.0 |
|
22 |
44.2 |
1.91 |
0.32 |
4.7 |
5.5 |
.413 |
24.5 |
| 2004-05 |
L.A. Lakers |
66 |
40.7 |
1.30 |
0.80 |
5.9 |
6.0 |
.433 |
27.6 |
|
| 2005-06 |
L.A. Lakers |
80 |
41.0 |
1.84 |
0.38 |
5.3 |
4.5 |
.450 |
35.4 |
|
7 |
44.9 |
1.14 |
0.43 |
6.3 |
5.1 |
.497 |
27.9 |
| 2006-07 |
L.A. Lakers |
77 |
40.8 |
1.44 |
0.47 |
5.7 |
5.4 |
.463 |
31.6 |
|
5 |
43.0 |
1.00 |
0.40 |
5.2 |
4.4 |
.462 |
32.8 |
| 2007-08 |
L.A. Lakers |
82 |
38.9 |
1.84 |
0.49 |
6.3 |
5.4 |
.459 |
28.3 |
|
8 |
40.4 |
1.1 |
0.9 |
6.1 |
6.9 |
.492 |
34.1 |
| Career |
866 |
36.5 |
1.53 |
0.59 |
5.3 |
4.6 |
.453 |
25.0 |
|
131 |
38.8 |
1.33 |
0.72 |
4.9 |
4.5 |
.439 |
23.3 |
Awards and achievements
- 3-time NBA champion: 2000, 2001, 2002
- NBA Most Valuable Player: 2008
- 2-time scoring champion: 2006, 2007
- 10-time NBA All-Star: 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 » *Has started in each of his appearances
*10 consecutive appearances (No All-Star game in 1999 due to league-wide lock-out)
- 2-time NBA All-Star Game MVP: 2002, 2007
- 10-time All-NBA Selection: » *First Team: 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008
*Second Team: 2000, 2001 » *Third Team: 1999, 2005
- 8-time All-Defensive Selection: » *First Team: 2000, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008
*Second Team: 2001, 2002
- NBA All-Rookie Second Team: 1997
- NBA Slam Dunk Contest champion: 1997
- NBA regular season leader in: » *points: 2003 (2,461), 2006 (2,832, 7th in NBA history), 2007 (2,430), 2008 (2,323)
*points per game: 2006 (35.4, 9th in NBA history), 2007 (31.6) » *field goals attempted: 2006 (2,173), 2007 (1,757), 2008 (1,690)
*field goals made: 2003 (868), 2006 (978), 2007 (813) » *free throws attempted: 2006 (819), 2007 (768)
*free throws made: 2006 (696), 2007 (667)
- 2nd most points in a Game: 81 (January 22, 2006 vs. the Toronto Raptors)
NBA records
Kobe Bryant holds four and shares five
NBA records:
Most three-point field goals made, one game: 12 (January 7 2003 vs. Seattle SuperSonics; shared with Donyell Marshall)
Most three-point field goals made, one half: 8 (March 28 2003 vs. Washington Wizards; shared with 6 players).
Most free throws made, one quarter: 14 (3rd quarter, December 20 2005 vs. Dallas Mavericks; shared with 6 players).
Most free throws attempted, one quarter: 16 (3rd quarter, December 20 2005 vs. Dallas Mavericks; shared with 6 players).
Youngest Slam Dunk champion: (18 years, 175 days), after winning the contest at the 1997 NBA All-Star Weekend.
Youngest player to be named to the NBA All-Defensive Team: (1999-00 NBA season)
Youngest player to start a game: (18 Years, 158 days)
Lakers franchise records
Kobe Bryant holds or shares 30 Los Angeles Lakers franchise records:
Points » * Season: 2,832 (2005-06)
* Game: 81 (January 22 2006 vs. Toronto Raptors)
* Games scoring 40 points or more, season: 27 (2005-06) » * Consecutive games of 50 points or more: 4 (March 16–23 2007)
* Consecutive games of 40 points or more: 9 (February 6–February 23 2003)
Field goals made » * Half: 18 (2nd half, January 22 2006 vs. Toronto Raptors).
* Quarter: 11 (February 2 1999 vs. Seattle SuperSonics).
Free throws made » * Game: 23 (twice, most recently on January 31 2006 vs. New York Knicks).
* Game, playoffs: 21 (May 4 2008 vs. Utah Jazz). » * Half: 16 (January 30 2001 vs. Cleveland Cavaliers)
* Quarter: 14 (3rd quarter, December 20 2005 vs. Dallas Mavericks) » * Quarter, playoffs: 11 (tied with 3 players; May 8 1997 vs. Utah Jazz).
* Consecutive: 62 (January 11–22, 2006). » * Game: 12 (January 7 2003 vs. Seattle SuperSonics).
* Half: 8 (1st half, March 28 2003 vs. Washington Wizards). » * Consecutive: 9 (January 7 2003 vs. Seattle SuperSonics).
* Season attempts: 518 (2005-06)
* Quarter, playoffs: 3 (tied with 6 players; May 17 1999 vs. San Antonio Spurs).
Other awards and achievements
Gold Medal with Team USA, Tournament of Americas Olympic Qualifiers
1996 Naismith High School Player of the Year
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