It is 8:24pm. These were the two numbers that Kobe Bryant wore during his 20 year NBA career. A kid born in Philadelphia, turned into a first round draft pick. Then he became an NBA legend. Today has been rocked by the tragic news that he and his 13 year old daughter passed away in a helicopter crash around 10:00 A.M. Pacific time. When I first heard the news I thought this cannot be real. Hopefully it's a hoax. Then more reports came out and it became real. This is not going to be an obituary. This is a celebratory piece about the career of Kobe Bryant.
Early Years
He was born in Philadelphia and raised in both Philadelphia and Italy. He began playing the sport at age three. He was a Lakers fan growing up. He attended Lower Merion High School in Philadelphia. While at Lower Merion he was named Naismith Player of the Year, Gatorade National Men's Player of the Year, McDonalds' All-American among many other honors. He had college offers from Duke, Michigan, North Carolina, and Villanova. He decided to forgo college and go straight to the NBA.
NBA Career
"With the 13th pick in the 1996 NBA Draft, the Charlotte Hornets select Kobe Bryant, Guard, Lower Merion High School. He would be traded to the Lakers on draft night. He participated and won the 1997 NBA Slam Dunk Contest at All-Star Weekend. In 1999, a coaching change was made for the Lakers. The man who led Michael Jordan to two three-peats would be coaching Kobe from now on. That man was Phil Jackson. They would win the next three championships. Shaquille O'Neal joined Kobe for the three-peat. They became an unstoppable duo. In 2004, they made the NBA Finals but would lose to the Detroit Pistons. Shaq would wind up leaving before the 2005-06 season. January 22, 2006 would be a high point for his career. Kobe scored 81 points in a single game. That would become and remains the second most points scored in a single game. Then after the 05-06 season he changed his number from 8 to 24. 2008 would be the beginning of a three year run of greatness. The Lakers returned to the Finals and lost to the Boston Celtics in six games. 2009 they defeated the Orlando Magic in five games to win the championship. Then in 2010 they would make their third straight finals trip to face the team they played two years earlier....Boston Celtics. The Lakers ended that series with a repeat championship winning in seven games. That would be his final championship of his career. 2013 was the beginning of the end of his career. The playoff push was going strong on April 10, 2013 he was the first score 47 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 4 blocks, and 3 steals in one game. Two days later (4/12/13) he tore his achilles and shot two free throws with the torn achilles as he was fouled on the play. The next two seasons would be injury-plagued. His final season would be 2015-2016. He then embarked on a farewell tour at the end of November 2015 when he announced his retirement at the end of the season. He told teams to not have any ceremonies for a farewell tour. He was honored with video tributes and fan reactions. I even saw him play in February of 2016. In his final all-star game in 2016 he scored 10 points, 6 rebounds, and 7 assists.
Final Game
April 13, 2016 was the final day of the NBA season. Two stories dominated the headlines...Kobe's last game and Warriors go for 73 wins. This would be the Lakers worst record in franchise history, but win number 17 would be special. Kobe Bryant went for 60 points in his last game. I remember watching this game and watching him embrace it and take it all in. He truly left it all on the court in true Kobe fashion.
Post NBA
He was very involved with coaching his daughters' teams. He was also involved with ESPN and had a series on ESPN+ called "Detail with Kobe Bryant." This show looked more in-depth with certain players. He was passionate about advancing the game.
Career Achievements/Stats
5-Time NBA Champion (2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2010)
2 Olympic Gold Medals (2008, 2012)
7 Finals Appearances (2000-02, 2004, 2008-10)
2-Time NBA Finals MVP (2009-10)
2018 Academy Award-Best Animated Short Film (Dear Basketball)
NBA MVP (2008)
2-Time Scoring Champion (2006-2007)
18-Time NBA All-Star (1998, 2000-2016)
4-Time All Star Game MVP (2002, 2007, 2009, 2011)
15-Time All NBA Team (First Team: 2002-2004, 2006-2013)
12-Time All Defensive Team
NBA All Rookie Team (1997)
NBA Slam Dunk Contest Champion (1997)
2nd Most Points in a Single Game: 81
Most Seasons Played for a Single Franchise: 20 (tied)
Most All NBA Selections: 15 (tied with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Tim Duncan)
Most Points in one arena: 16,161 (Staples Center)
Youngest to Start a Game: 18 years, 158 days)
Games Played: 1,346
Career Points Per Game: 25.0
Career Rebounds Per Game: 5.2
Career Assists Per Game: 4.7
Career Free Throw Pctg: 83.7
Career Three-Point Pctg: 32.9
Career Field Goal Pctg: 44.7
Top 5 in these regular season categories: Points, Field Goals (Attempts, Makes, Misses), Free Throws (Attempts, Makes, Misses)
Playoff Games Played: 220
Playoff Points Per Game: 25.6
Playoff Rebounds Per Game: 5.1
Playoff Assists Per Game: 4.7
Playoff Free-Throw Pctg: 81.6
Playoff Three-Point Pctg: 33.1
Playoff Field Goal Pctg: 44.8
Top 5 in these playoff categories: Three-Pointers Attempts, Free Throws (Attempts, Makes), Points, Minutes played, Turnovers, Field Goals Made
It is no question that Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest to ever play the game of basketball. He is one of the greatest in all of sports. So, we will close this blog differently, in true Kobe fashion. #MAMBAOUT
